


Girl Meets High School

by FireGirl125



Category: Girl Meets World
Genre: Best Friends, F/M, Friendship, High School, Real Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-07
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-07-12 23:48:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 70,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7128983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireGirl125/pseuds/FireGirl125
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Riley Matthews has always lived in her dad Cory Matthews world, but now she gets to experience being a small fish in a big lake as she takes on High School. Follow Riley and her friends Maya Hart, Lucas Friar and Farkle Minkus as they take on the world of High School.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 1x01: Girl Meets High School

                                                                            

* * *

 

_**ACT 1** _

* * *

 

Riley Matthews lay sound asleep in her bed, holding the blankets close to her as she was dreaming something magical, something wonderful, something exquisite—she dreamt she was on the same boat as none other than the movie star Leonardo DiCaprio.

* * *

_They were heading to one of the exotic islands that existed, and Riley had only hoped and dreamed Leonardo would ask her to join him. She saw him turn around in his boat, Riley using the fan she had in her hand to fan herself. He walked closer to her, staring down at her and grabbing her hand with a smile._

" _Stay cool, Riley. Stay cool." Riley told herself, but one look into Leonardo's eyes and she suddenly started squealing like a fan girl. "Oh, there's no way I can stay cool."_

" _Riley, I want to ask you one of the most very important questions that a man could ever ask of a 14-year-old girl." Leonardo looked almost moonstruck towards Riley while the young girl covered her hand with her mouth. "Riley, I know we only known each other for a few hours, but when someone has a connection, you just know. Riley…will you…" The next sound that came out of Leonardo's mouth…sounded like a bullhorn, causing Riley to widen her eyes. "Sorry, let me try that again; Riley…will you…" Once again, the sound was a bullhorn and Riley was being slowly pulled away from her dream._

* * *

Riley abruptly woke up but was entirely surprised to see that her father, Cory Matthews was the one holding the bullhorn and he was about to honk it again until Riley grabbed it from his hands and threw the bullhorn onto the fire escape. Cory widened his eyes at his daughter's actions, but Riley simply crossed her arms and furrowed her eyebrows.

"I interrupted a dream about Leonardo DiCaprio again, didn't I?" Cory questioned, Riley nodding her head with a furrowed eyebrow. "Oh boy, I totally meant to do that."

"Well, thanks to you I'm never going to know whether he wanted me to go on an exotic island with him. There were going to be coconuts and hula dancers!" Riley got up from the bed crossed her arms, Cory deciding to drop his daughter's dream for now. "Besides, why did you wake me up so early?"

"It's 7:00 a.m., your first day of High School begins in an hour, you don't want to be late for your first day of High School. Did that explain everything?" Cory questioned while Riley suddenly looked nervous.

"I was hoping you would forget I had to go to school and just let me stay home for the rest of my life." Riley pointed a finger at him, nervously looking at the fire escape.

"Riley, come on, are you really nervous about High School? It's just like middle school…only ten times worse." Cory shrugged his shoulders, but Riley scowled at him.

"Yeah, that makes me feel so much better." Riley rolled her eyes. "Dad, what if High School is too hard or the teachers are too mean?"

"I'm one of your teachers." Cory reminded her, Riley shrugging her shoulders slightly. "Besides, I think you're going to be fine. You were smart to make it through middle school so you're going to be fine during High School. There's nothing to worry about."

"Was High School hard for you and mom?" Riley wondered.

"Oh yeah, it was hard…college was ten times harder…then there was also having kids and…we'll leave that discussion for another day." Cory pointed a finger at her while Riley shrugged her shoulders. "Riley, I know it seems scary now, but do you want to know what's the best thing you can do?"

"Cower and hide so that no one will find me?" Riley questioned, Cory shaking his head.

"Embrace it. This is the beginning of adulthood…well, slight adulthood. You still have to be home by nine every night." Cory said. "But the point is, these are the last four years before you have to go into the real world. Don't hate it…embrace it." Riley nodded her head and hugged her father tightly, Cory patting her back with a smile. "Now, go get ready for school. Your mother and I made your favorite breakfast." Riley squeezed her father and started to make her way to the bathroom, but her father put a hand up and pointed to Riley with interest. "By the way, what were you doing on a boat with Leonardo DiCaprio? You're 14?"

"He's a movie star and he was in _Titanic_ , I think that's a good enough excuse, don't you think?" Riley shrugged her shoulders and walked to the bathroom, Cory thinking about his daughter's answer. He shrugged his shoulders and went to go get the bullhorn Riley threw onto the fire escape, getting ready for his next challenge; waking up his son Auggie for school.

* * *

                                                                   

* * *

 Riley stepped onto the campus of John Quincy High School, her holding her backpack close to her with slight worry. She didn't know what she was going to expect when she went in there…High School was a whole different ball game. However, she did hear a familiar voice…and he was hitting on some of the cheerleaders.

"Ladies! How goes it…" Riley turned her head to see Farkle Minkus talking to the cheerleaders, but instead, the girls laughed at him and started making their way past him, into the school building. Farkle had to admit he was slightly disappointed that none of the girls wanted to talk to him, but Riley walked up to him and tapped his shoulder.

"You struck out, didn't you Farkle?" Riley questioned, Farkle shrugging it off.

"It's okay, she was only the 10th girl I attempted to hit on this morning." Farkle waved his eyebrows as Riley widened her eyes. "Would you like to be number 11?"

"All these years and you'd think you'd learn." Riley patted the top of Farkle's head, the two of them entering the campus. "So Farkle did you get your schedule?"

"Not yet, but with a brain like mine…I'm bound to get into every AP class in this place and graduate by the end of the year." Farkle did a dramatic pose while Riley raised an eyebrow.

"You need 44 credits to graduate from High School." Riley explained to him. "So unless you take four classes and each class is worth 10 credits, you're not leaving here for another four years."

"What? I can't be stuck in this building for four years!" Farkle grabbed Riley's shirt and pulled her closer to him. "Do you know what they do to Farkle's like me?!"

"I don't know, what do they do to Farkle's like you?" Riley asked before Farkle pointed towards the locker.

"They lock you in there and I don't think I would go well in there. Lots can go wrong in there. The only way things can't go wrong in there is if I'm over here...with you." Farkle quickly explained, Riley nodding her head as if things made sense. Farkle and Riley walked over towards the main office to get their schedule where they spotted their friend Maya Hart sitting in the chair, crossing her arms with a smirk. Riley and Farkle knew that smile already…Maya had already done something.

"Maya, why are you sitting on the principal's bench? Wait…what did you do?" Riley wondered, looking up at the office and back towards her firend. "Maya, it's not even first period yet."

"I know," Maya shrugged her shoulders. "I egged the principal's car as soon as I got here."

"You egged the principal's car? Why would you egg the principal's car? What did the car ever do to you?" Riley shot out question after the question while Maya put her hand up.

"Relax nugget, I egged the car to make a statement. Everyone is going to know who Maya Hart is in this place…and now the principal knows my name and knows well enough to have my mother on speed dial." Maya shrugged her shoulders with nonchalance as Riley and Farkle stared at each other.

"I still don't know what the car did to deserve an egging." Riley slightly pouted while she sat on the bench with Maya. "Did you get your schedule yet?"

"Nope, because I'm planning on being expelled." Maya slightly joked, but Riley and Farkle didn't find it funny. "All right, I'll apologize for egging the car…"

"Good, that's what you should do…because the last thing you want is to start off High School with a bad bang." Riley got up from the seat and patted Maya's head, Maya furrowing her eyebrows slightly. "Now I will see you in history class, and you're going to be there…"

"Do we have to show up?" Maya questioned, Riley nodding her head with a smile.

"Yes, we have to show up." Riley declared before the smile dropped from her face and she shook her head. "Because my dad teaches history and if we _don't_ show up, he will hunt us down and make sure we _are_ history." Riley and Farkle walked away while Maya shrugged her shoulders, taking out the schedule she had in her backpack and looking through it. In reality, Maya didn't egg the principal's car…she just didn't want Farkle and Riley to find out what the principal really wanted to see her about.

* * *

Lucas Friar walked along the school hallways, and while he was excited for High School, he was also feeling a little uncomfortable. For one thing, there were girls walking down the hallways, winking at him as if Lucas was a fine piece of real estate. He wasn't interested in any of the girls here; in fact he only had his eye on one girl since the seventh grade—and her name was Riley Matthews. Sure she was a little eccentric, but she was also a fantastic friend and that's what drew Lucas to her. Unfortunately, Lucas couldn't find the courage to tell Riley how he felt in fear of ruining his friendship. What if they dated and it didn't work out? Lucas didn't want to think like that…but he knew he just couldn't risk losing Riley as a friend. She was too special and too important to him. As he walked along the hallway, he stopped and saw Riley talking to Farkle, a smile appearing on his face as he leaned against one of the lockers and gazed at her. He had to admit she looked incredible and she didn't even have to try. However, he also remembered that he and Riley were just friends, and he was determined to make sure it stayed that way. Lucas cleared his throat and walked towards Farkle and Riley, holding his backpack close to him and giving them a smile.

"Hey guys, happy first day of High School." Lucas grinned, Riley and Farkle turning their heads and smiling at him. "I have to say…High School is a lot different than I expected to be."

"Why do you say that?" Riley raised an eyebrow, but before Lucas could answer, the cheerleaders walked past him and winked, letting out flirtatious giggles as they walked to their first class. "Well, it seems you're quite popular and you've only been here for five minutes."

"It's actually quite uncomfortable. Do all girls in High School do that?" Lucas tried not to stare at the cheerleaders but Riley and Farkle nodded their heads.

"Yep. Pretty much." Riley and Farkle both answered. Lucas decided to change the subject and took out his schedule, wanting to compare what classes he shared with Riley, Farkle and eventually Maya.

"So Riley, what classes do you have?" Lucas cleared his throat as if nothing was bothering him.

"Me? I have, history with my dad…oh, isn't that class going to be fun?" Riley clapped her hands with fake enthusiasm.

"Why do you say it like that?" Farkle asked, Riley shrugging her shoulders.

"Because my dad knows ways of really embarrassing me on the first day of school. You should have been there when he tried to embarrass me on the first day of _sixth_ grade." Riley shuddered at the thought, both Lucas and Farkle deciding it wasn't a good idea to ask her to elaborate. "Anyway, bad memories…really bad memories."

"Hey, has anyone seen Maya?" Lucas wondered. "I'm still waiting for her to come here and give me the first 'Bucky Mc Boing Boing of High School."

"She got in trouble for egging the principal's car." Farkle explained. "I know, I thought she would have at least waited until second period."

"I'm not surprised." Lucas thought as he, Riley and Farkle stared at the bulletin board in front of them with all the extracurricular activities. "So, have you guys decided what clubs you're going to join?"

"I'm joining the French Club." Farkle quickly commented. "French is the language of love."

"I thought that was Spanish." Lucas raised an eyebrow, Riley slightly chuckling at the both of them.

"I'm going to try out for the cheerleading squad!" Riley clapped her hands. "I never made it in Middle School but I think making it in High School would make the years of rejection fade away! GO TEAM!" Riley posed in an awkward pose, causing Lucas to smile and shake his head with a grin.

"Well Riley, at least you have spirit." Lucas complimented, Riley flashing him a cheerful smile. "I haven't decided what extracurricular activities I'm going to do yet."

"You're pretty athletic, why don't you join the basketball team?" Riley suggested. "That way when you make the basketball team and I successfully become a cheerleader, we can hang out together."

"I'd like that." Lucas smiled, but quickly cleared his throat when he found himself holding the smile on his face longer than he was supposed to.

"Lucas?" Farkle wondered, Lucas turning to him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah." Lucas said, but he was more than glad when Maya walked up to them, stuffing her hands in her pockets and giving them a smirk. "Well, look…it's Maya."

"Ranger Rick…long time no see." Maya used a faux southern accent as Lucas rolled his eyes. "How was spending the summer bringing in the old cattle and dosey-doing in the barn?"

"Seriously, do you even listen to me when I talk?" Lucas questioned, Maya shrugging her shoulders.

"Maybe, I might…or not." Maya shrugged her shoulders and stared at Riley. "So, I heard cowboy is going to try out for the basketball team, you're going to try cheerleading and Farkle's going to land no girls while speaking French. Gee, sounds exciting."

"Are you going to do something Maya?" Farkle questioned, Maya shaking her head.

"Nope, I'm not joining any dorky clubs." Maya answered. "I don't see the point in it."

"You get to put your talents to the test." Riley explained. "Here, why don't you try something like art? You were great at it in middle school."

"Your attitude matches the art clique over there.' Farkle pointed over towards where the art kids were standing, Maya turning her head and looking surprised.

"Gee, Farkle you really think I look like them?" Maya feigned compassion as Lucas and Riley stared at each other. "Here, how about I show you what you look like…" Maya grabbed Farkle and pulled him towards the locker, opening it, stuffing him in it and closing the door shut. Riley and Lucas looked surprised as Maya clapped her hands and went to the classroom, Lucas walking over and opening the locker.

"Farkle, are you okay?" Lucas bent down and stared at his friend. They stood silent for a few minutes until Farkle simply nodded his head, giving Lucas a smile.

"She totally digs me." Farkle said, Riley and Lucas staring at each other with surprise. Farkle hopped out of the locker as the three of them entered the history room—only to notice the classroom looked just like the middle school classroom. "Wow, something's don't change." Farkle explained while Riley and Lucas went to take a seat at one of the desks. They noticed Maya was staring at the board, only for them to see Cory holding a history book and putting it on the table.

"Dad, glad you're here so we can talk!" Riley walked over to her father and folded her hands, Cory looking up and appearing surprised by his daughter's excitement. "Okay, I need you to do me a big favor."

"What's that?" Cory wondered, Riley leaning closer to her father.

"I need no one in this school to know we're related." Riley said, although Cory was surprised by Riley's request. "It's just…well…this is High School now, and I want to be one of 'the cool kids'. You know…extremely cool…suave…cool…" Riley tried to do a cool pose, but instead she almost tripped, using the desk as a way to catch herself from falling.

"You want to be like one of the cool kids? That's cute." Cory pointed a finger at her. "And I wish a teacher would get paid more for watching students until 3:00 p.m., so it looks like we both want something."

"Dad, I'm serious." Riley said. "This could be a fresh new start for me, and like you said, I'm going to be here for the next four years. Might as well make it count."

"All right, you don't want everyone to know we're related. Fine." Cory put his hand up with a small smile. "Consider it done." The students started filing in one by one, with Riley going to take her seat. Cory started writing on the board and turned around, capping his marker and glancing at the kids. "All right students, welcome to freshman History. I am Mr. Matthews and I'll be your teacher this year…I'm also Riley's dad." Cory pointed towards Riley as Riley's eyes widened, some of the high school students staring at Riley as if she was a specimen at the zoo.

"Someone please jab me with a spoon." Riley sighed, but she wasn't expecting Lucas to take it literally when he took a spoon out of his backpack and jabbed her with it, Riley glancing at him and raising an eyebrow. "Not literally."

"Sorry." Lucas put the spoon back in his lunch bag and stared Cory, seeing he was walking around the room and sitting down.

"All right, let's get started. We're going to start with something really simple. I want you all to take out a sheet of paper, and write down what you want to achieve while you're in High School for the next four years. Then we're going to put it in this box, and when the last day of senior year comes, you'll open the box and read what your freshman self said." Cory noticed Farkle was raising his hand, Cory pointing towards him with a smile. "Yes and we're going to Farkle."

"Is it Farkle time, sir?" Farkle wondered, appearing almost intrigued.

"Ooh, I _love_ Farkle time!" Cory walked over to the seat and sat down, Farkle getting up from his chair and heading to the table, taking out his name tag and placing it on the table.

"Thank you, I am Farkle!" Farkle shouted while everyone stared at him, Farkle walking back and forth towards the other students. "Ladies and gentlemen, if there's one thing I want to achieve when my time is over here, it's ruling this school with an iron fist…and to either make Maya Hart or Riley Matthews my queen." Maya and Riley glance at each other and shuddered, Farkle making a dramatic pose as he glanced into the sky.

"Well, I think I had enough Farkle time for one semester." Maya said, getting up from her chair and walking over to the front of the classroom. "Take a seat before I make you sit."

"Demanding…I like it." Farkle walked past Maya as Maya shook her head, following Farkle as she sat down and ran a hand through her hair.

"All right, now that we've had our daily 'Farkle' time, let's work on the assignment." Cory clapped his hands and stared at his students. Maya glanced over at Farkle and shook her head, wishing that Farkle would tone down the attitude just a little bit. No one was going to take Farkle seriously in High School if he continued to act like that.

* * *

"2, 4, 6, 8, who do we appreciate! Go team!" The cheerleaders cheered that afternoon as Riley and Lucas made their way to the gym. Cheerleading and basketball tryouts were in the gym and all the both of them wanted to do was impress the teams they were trying out for. Riley kept her eyes fixated on the cheerleaders, Lucas noticing Riley's expression.

"Look at them…" Riley clasped her hands together. "They're High School cheerleaders…and I want to be one of them…" Riley pointed towards them while Lucas put her finger down.

"I'm glad you're excited but pointing at them isn't going to help." Lucas chuckled, staring at the basketball team before lifting up a finger and pointing to the guys trying out. "But I think I'm going to make my mark with them."

"Make sure you score a touchdown!" Riley clapped her hands, Lucas giving Riley a blank look.

"I think you mean 'make a basket'." Lucas corrected her, Riley nodding her head and moving her hair to the side. "All right, since you wished me luck, I'm gonna wish you luck now… _1, 2, 3, Go! Please don't fall and break your nose, go Riley!"_ Riley chuckled and moved some of her hair from her face, Lucas shrugging his shoulders with a smile. "I know, it's what I do." Riley laughed and started making her way towards the cheerleaders, Lucas smiling towards her while grabbing one of the basketballs, making his way towards basketball tryouts.

* * *

A half hour later Maya, Farkle, Lucas and Riley met up at the train station, all of glancing at each other while holding their backpacks close. Not only were their backpacks heavy from their new textbooks, but they were drained from trying out for their extracurricular activities. Even Farkle, who had so much energy, looked exhausted. Maya let out a tired sigh, stuffing her hands in her pockets and raising an eyebrow.

"I honestly couldn't be more tired." Maya sighed. "The first day of high school…done. How many more days until graduation?"

"I can't even count right now, my brain is fried." Farkle rubbed his temples as he saw Lucas trying to rub Riley's shoulders, her releasing a satisfied groan from how the massage felt. "What happened to you two?"

"And why is cowboy giving you a massage?" Maya added. "Do you think he could do me next because my arms are killing me."

"Well, let's start with how we did with our extracurricular activities: good news, I made the basketball team." Lucas smiled before it diminished. "Bad news, the other guys on the team are rough."

"Good news, I made the cheerleading squad!" Riley clapped her hands while Maya looked surprised. However, Riley cleared her throat and rubbed the back of her neck while glancing away. "Bad news, it's as the mascot and I fell on my back while trying to do one of their stunts. It was a cartwheel."

"Ouch…" Maya and Farkle spoke in unison.

"It's not that bad…" Maya shrugged her shoulders. "At least you'll be _next_ to the cheerleaders."

"It's not the same." Riley pouted, Lucas patting her back softly. "I really wanted to make the team…but I guess I won't this year…or next year, or the year after that, or after that."

"Riley? You sound like a sad sack." Maya crossed her arms, but Riley pointed a finger at her friend.

"I do not sound like a sad sack _._ " Riley huffed as Lucas and Farkle stared at each other. "I am not a sad sack. I will never be a sad sack. In fact I'm thrilled."

"Yes because the girl who made the team as the mascot looks really happy right now." Maya sardonically answered, finally running a hand through her hair. "Look, maybe us trying extracurricular activities isn't for the best. Maybe we should spend as much time as we possibly can with each other, starting right now." Maya grabbed Lucas, Riley and Farkle and pulled them into a group hug, the three of them glancing at each other and wondering why Maya was suddenly acting affectionate.

"May is something wrong?" Riley had to know. "If there is something wrong, you can tell us."

"What? Why and ruin the moment?" Maya continued to play it off while everyone continued staring at her. "No, there's nothing wrong whatsoever, nothing at all. Nothing to see here. Bye, bye." Maya broke the hug and turned around, about to make her way towards the bench, until something fell out of her backpack. Riley walked over and picked up the note, staring at it and looking over at Maya in shock.

"Maya, why is there a pamphlet for an art scholarship at a school in France in your bag?" Riley crossed her arms, wanting to know.

"What? That's not…no…" Maya scoffed and pretended to laugh, only for Riley to walk up to her and shake her head. "That's nothing…Riley, you know that."

"Do I?" Riley sadly stared at her, Maya now looking away. "Maya, why do you have this in your things? We…we were supposed to hang out together, this was going to be the greatest year of our lives…we were going to go to High School together."

"I haven't decided on whether or not I want to take the offer yet, Riley." Maya softly said. "If I take it then I can stay in France for a year and learn art from some of the most talented people in the world. If not, then I'll be here…in New York…with Farkle." Farkle flashed a 'Broadway' smile after Maya mentioned his name, but Riley wasn't done talking about this.

"Maya, I don't want you to go." Riley folded her hands, Maya taking the pamphlet back and giving her friend a serious look.

"This is why I didn't tell you, Farkle or Ranger Rick here." Lucas looked somewhat offended by Maya's name for him but she continued before Lucas had a chance to intervene. "I knew you guys wouldn't want me to go and you'd want me to stay. But the truth of the matter is…I don't know if I want to."

"But we were going to start our freshman year together…who am I supposed to have if I don't have you." Riley saw Maya shrugging her shoulders, motioning towards Lucas and Farkle.

"You got Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dumb here." Maya tried to make a joke out of it before becoming serious. "But Riley, you need to understand…this is my decision. Not yours. And right now I don't even know what decision I'm going to make. Um…look, I have to go. I'll see you guys in school tomorrow." Maya waved and started making her way out of the train station, Lucas, Farkle and Riley glancing at each other.

"Maya can't leave." Riley stared at Farkle while Lucas put a hand on her shoulder. "Can she?" Lucas, Farkle and Riley stood there, thinking about the news Maya had just told them. Would Maya really go to France for a year and leave her group of friends behind ** _?_**

* * *

  _ **END ACT 1**_

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

"We need to convince Maya to stay." Riley explained as she and Lucas were in her living room, Riley pacing back and forth while appearing almost horrified. "I get that Paris is a wonderful opportunity for her and I'm happy for her but the truth of the matter is I don't want her to go." Lucas had been listening to every word Riley was saying, while Farkle helped himself to Riley's kitchen and made himself a sandwich.

"I have an idea on how Maya could stay and go to France." Farkle walked into the living room and took a bite out of his sandwich.

"How?" Riley and Lucas stared over at Farkle with amazement.

"We clone Maya so she can be in two places at once." Farkle answered, Riley and Lucas shaking their heads slowly. "It's like I always say…two Maya's are better than one."

"Is your plan to date the clone Maya because the real Maya would never go for it?" Lucas reminded him, Farkle realizing Lucas had a point. Farkle snapped his fingers and sat on the sofa with a defeated expression, but Riley put a hand on her cheek.

"I'm just saying, I'm sure France is amazing and she'll have the best time, but…we need her." Riley explained. "We need her to stay here so we won't have to break up the perfect quartet."

"Breaking up the perfect quartet?" Farkle sounded shocked. "SHE CAN'T DO THAT! I WON'T LET HER!"

"Farkle!" Lucas shook his friend in order to get him to stop his panic attack. "Relax; remember the coping mechanism we talked about."

"I am Farkle, I am awesome, I am Farkle, I am awesome…" Farkle slowly chanted in order to become calm.

"See, doesn't that feel better?" Lucas questioned, Farkle now flashing a smile towards his friend.

"Much better." Farkle had to admit.

"Guys, while we're here working on chants for Farkle, Maya could be moving miles away…and we'd almost never get to see her." Riley refocused the both of them as they got into a thinking pose, brainstorming of ways to get Maya to stay in New York City. However, Riley's little brother Auggie entered the room and saw the three of them thinking, and he had to admit he was rather curious.

"Riley? What are you doing?" Auggie wondered, Riley only shifting her eyes to him.

"I'm thinking of a way to get Maya to say in New York so she won't have to leave for France." Riley responded.

"Oh, can I pose with you?" Auggie requested. Riley, Farkle and Lucas shrugged their shoulders while nodding their heads, not seeing the harm in having one more person think about how they were going to get Maya to stay. The four of them continued their thinking poses as the door opened to reveal Cory. Cory tried to take in the scene in front of him, but as he learned, he knew it was best to let his daughter tell him what was going on.

"I'm going to assume you're doing art homework and you're posing…for an imaginary painter." Cory said as he walked past them, Riley turning her head and letting out a sigh.

"Dad, we're a little busy right now." Riley told him. "Maya was accepted for an art scholarship in France and we don't want her to go."

"Wait, what?" Cory walked back to the living room, sitting down on the couch. "Maya was accepted to a program in France? That's amazing."

"Yeah, it's amazing but we'll also never get to see her." Riley said, Cory stroking his chin with interest. "I mean, we all promised each other we were going to do our freshman year of High School together…but how are we going to do our freshman year of High School together when Maya's in another country?"

"What does Maya have to say about this?" Cory asked while Riley and Lucas stared at each other. "Did she make a decision?"

'She said she doesn't know whether she wants to make a decision yet." Riley answered. "But dad, it's not fair. We were supposed to be doing our freshman year together. Who else is going to stand by me while I'm wearing a sweaty mascot suit?"

"Who else is going to stuff me in a locker when I get on her nerves?" Farkle added.

"Who else is going to call me Ranger Rick or Bucky Mc Boing Boing?" Lucas wondered before he shook his head. "On second thought, forget that."

"Guys, I know if Maya takes this you're all going to miss her…but what if Maya _doesn't_ take the scholarship or doesn't take chances? What if she feels like you're holding her back…from meeting the world?" Cory saw Riley and Farkle understood the point he was trying to make while Lucas bowed his head.

"True, so you think we should be encouraging Maya instead of holding her back?" Riley asked.

"That's exactly what you should be doing." Cory answered, Riley, Farkle and Lucas gazing at each other. "I think if there's anything Maya needs right now…it's her friends."

"You're right, dad…Maya needs us and we were only thinking about ourselves. Come on guys, let's go and find a way to tell Maya she's allowed to break our hearts…" Riley got up from the sofa and led Lucas and Farkle out of the house, but Cory's attention reverted to Auggie when he saw Auggie was in his thinking pose.

"Auggie? What are you doing?" Cory probed, Auggie glancing at his father without moving.

"I'm thinking in my thinking pose." Auggie replied. "Try it, it's actually fun." Cory shrugged his shoulders and decided to try the pose his son made him do. He had to admit, he did think better this way…

* * *

The next day at school, Maya sat in the art studio drawing something in her sketchbook when Riley, Lucas and Farkle entered the classroom. They hadn't spoken to Maya since the day before at the train station and they really wanted to make things right with her. Maya continued drawing her portrait before her eyes locked over to Riley, a minor smile appearing on her face.

"Hey guys." Maya closed her sketchbook and got up, Riley walking over to Maya with slight guilt.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Riley pondered, Maya looking back at her sketchbook.

"I was just doing some drawing." Maya was surprised when Riley took her sketchbook and looked at it. After a few moments of contemplating, Riley closed the sketchbook handed it back to Maya. Riley knew that Maya was superbly talented and deserved the opportunity and Riley also had to admit she had been thinking about herself and not how this would affect Maya.

"Maya, we're sorry about the way we acted yesterday." Riley put a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Don't you mean the way _you_ acted?" Farkle pointed to Riley, although neither Riley nor Maya were amused.

"Anyway as I was saying." Riley turned back around and grabbed her friend's hand. "If you want to go to France for a year and study art…then by all means, you have our support. I just want you to know, you're going to do great things Maya Hart…you're going to change the world and make it a better place. I guarantee it." Maya stared at Riley and back at her sketchbook, still considering what she should do.

"It really means to have your support…all of your support." Maya said, before shaking her head. "I still haven't decided what I'm going to do yet."

"Well, whatever you decide…you have us. You're always going to have us, whether you're here or in France." Riley pointed to herself, Lucas and Farkle. Maya knew she couldn't stay mad at her friends for long and decided to engulf them in a hug. As the four of them finished their hug, Maya parted it and glanced down at the sketchbook in her hand.

"How about we go to history class and I'll think about it there." Maya shrugged her shoulders and walked out of the room, Riley turning towards Lucas and Farkle.

"Whatever she decides we're going to be okay with it, right?" Riley stuffed her hands in her pockets while Lucas and Farkle agreed with her. "Come on, let's go to history class. We don't want to upset Mr. Matthews." Riley turned around and made her way out the door, Lucas and Farkle following behind her.

* * *

That afternoon at lunch, Riley, Lucas, Farkle and Maya stood on line, all of them complaining about their classes—and the enormous amounts of homework.

"My goodness, I've never had so much homework to do in my life." Riley moaned as she took milk from the open fridge. "How the heck am I supposed to juggle 10 complex math problems, a chapter for English and a report for history? My life is so hard."

"Take it from me, kid…life is probably the hardest thing there is and High School is just the beginning." The lunch lady glanced at Riley, putting a glob of Tuesday Surprise on her plate.

"Um, hi…what's in the Tuesday Surprise?" Lucas quizzed, the lunch lady putting a hand on her hip.

"I can't tell you what's in it boy!" The lunch lady put a bit of Tuesday Surprise on Lucas's plate, which caused him to shudder in fear. "It's a surprise." Lucas put his hand up defensively and took the tray, him, Riley, Maya and Farkle making their way to a table.

"Is anyone else scared to eat the Tuesday Surprise?" Lucas motioned towards the surprise with his fork. "I don't like surprises."

"Get used to it." Maya rolled her eyes and stared at Riley. "So Riles, are you excited for Cheerleading practice?"

"Not really." Riley furrowed her eyebrows and stabbed her Tuesday Surprise with her fork. "It's just a cold reminder of how I will never be a cheerleader…no matter how many times I try."

"Well if the cheerleaders don't want Riley, it's their loss." Lucas shrugged his shoulders, staring at her with a smile. "She would have made one awesome cheerleader…but they wouldn't know that because they didn't give Riley a chance. She's a remarkable human being who just needs a chance to show the world her talents. Don't worry, there will be someone out there who will listen. If trying out for being a cheerleader makes you happy…then make sure to follow your heart." Maya thought about Lucas's words while Riley blushed, staring away from Lucas and playing with her hair.

"Well shucks." Riley giggled slightly as Lucas's words floated through Maya's brain.

"Riley fell doing a cartwheel. That's talent?" Farkle reminded Lucas as Riley glared at him.

"I can do _half_ a cartwheel…but halfsies aren't allowed." Riley pointed a finger at him as Lucas stared over at Maya. Maya was still thinking, her getting up from the chair and taking her lunch tray. "Maya, where are you going?" Maya gave her friends a smile before motioning to the door of the cafeteria.

"I'm going to use my talents." Maya turned around and left the cafeteria, Riley, Lucas and Farkle realizing what was going on.

"She's going to make a decision." Farkle declared, the three of them getting up from their chairs and leaving the cafeteria. "What if she decides she wants to go?"

"As much as I said I was going to respect her decision…I don't think I can." Riley admitted. "I mean, I love Maya and she's my best friend and all…but if she goes then it's like a little piece of me goes with her."

"Don't worry, you'll always have us." Farkle grinned at Riley, causing her to walk down the hall.

"Yeah, I think I'm going to go find Maya." Lucas and Farkle watched Riley turn the corner, seeing she was going to find her best friend.

* * *

Maya walked into the history classroom as Cory was eating lunch, but he was surprised to see that Maya was standing in his classroom when she didn't have to be. He was more shocked to see that she was worried and she wanted to talk about something.

"Maya, is everything okay?" Cory got up from his chair to make his way to Maya.

"I need some advice, Mr. Matthews." Maya walked to her desk and sat down, Cory acknowledging he was listening while leaning against his own desk. "I'm still thinking about whether or not it's a good idea for me to take the scholarship to France. I mean, I get this could be a great opportunity and not many kids have an opportunity like this…but I also think about if I would be happy there? I mean here, my talent is somewhat appreciated but I have great friends like Riley, Lucas and Farkle…meanwhile if I go to France, I'll probably be one of the greatest artists in the world…but what good is that if you have no one to share your success with? I thought it was going to be an easy decision…but it's not."

"Maya, you love to draw and paint, right?" Cory examined, Maya nodding her head as if to answer his question. "Why do you like to draw and paint?"

"I love it because it allows me to express my thoughts and feelings." Maya said, Cory letting out a smile. "It allows my heart to think clearly."

"So use what you're heart is telling you and paint a picture of the situation…and maybe in your drawing then you will find the answer." Cory patted her shoulder. "You're incredibly talented, Maya. You're going to figure this out." Maya nodded her head and went to give Cory a hug…but the moment was interrupted when Riley tripped and entered the classroom, both Cory and Maya staring at Riley with misperception.

"Oh boy…I hope I wasn't interrupting anything." Riley got up from the floor as Maya gave her friend a grin. "Sorry, I...I had a feeling I was going to find you here."

"Riley, can you come with me to the art studio?" Maya asked. "There's something I want to do." Riley nodded her head and followed her friend out of the classroom, Cory staring and smiling at the both of them before heading back to finish his lunch.

* * *

Maya and Riley sat in the art studio as Maya drew in her notepad, Maya stopping for a moment to stare at the artwork she did. She continued drawing as Riley sat there, tapping the desk, Maya looking up from the paper and beaming at her. After what seemed like an eternity, Maya walked over to Riley and showed her the notebook, Riley raising an eyebrow with curiosity.

"Go ahead, look at it." Maya instructed, Riley glancing down and seeing Maya's drawing. The drawing was a picture of Maya, Riley, Lucas and Farkle in front of the John Quincy Adams High School Building, with Cory looking on at the corner of the page. Riley didn't understand what the picture meant. What was Maya trying to tell her?

"I don't understand." Riley shrugged her shoulders. "You drew a picture of me, you, Farkle, Lucas and my dad in front of the school. What is this for?"

"I did what your dad suggested, and I drew what was in my heart." Maya explained, pointing to the picture. "Being in this building, with you, Farkle and Lucas…with your dad…that's what's in my heart. I'm going to stay here and go to High School."

"Wait, are you sure about this?" Riley got up from her position and folded her hands, Maya gazing back at the drawing. "I don't want you to eventually hate us for getting in the way of something that makes you happy. This could change your entire life."

"Yeah I know…" Maya said. "But my life was going to change anyway. The moment we walked into this building for our first day of High School, my life changed. I think the change to High School is more adaptable than the change to France. For one thing, I can't get a hug from my best friend whenever I want, now can I?" Maya walked over to Riley and squeezed her into a tight bear hug, Riley grinning and holding Maya close.

"Yay!" Riley giggled, Maya gaping back at her "I really hope you don't end up regretting your decision."

"No, I won't regret it." Maya said. "I think this is the best decision I've ever made." Riley and Maya hugged once more before heading out of the art room and seeing Lucas and Farkle standing there with tears in their eyes. The girls glanced at each other and knew the boys were listening in, Farkle handing Lucas a tissue and Lucas blowing his nose into it.

"Yep, that's right weirdoes; I'm going to stay here for High School!" Maya announced as Farkle pulled her into a hug. Maya nodded her head slowly and patted Farkle's back, Lucas and Riley sharing a grin. "All right, you're killing the mood Farkle." Farkle let go of Maya as the four them started making their way down the hallway. "I think I am going to take up an extracurricular activity…I'm going to join art club. It's the one thing I know I'm good at. Oh, there's also one thing I know I'm good at." Maya looked over at a few of the cheerleaders, her glance going back towards Farkle. "Farkle, would you like help in landing a cheerleader?"

"Yes please." Farkle nodded his head, Maya chuckling as she whispered something in his ear. Farkle's eyes widened and he clapped his hands, patting Maya on the shoulder before making his way to the cheerleaders.

"Maya, what did you tell him?" Lucas stared at his friend, knowing she was up to something.

"Just watch." Maya stuffed her hands in her pockets as Farkle walked up to the cheerleaders. They all stared at him while Farkle crossed his arms and wiggled his eyebrows.

" _Vos pieds sentent comme le fromage pourri et votre sourire me rend malade_ (Your feet smell like rotten cheese and your smile makes me sick)." Farkle spoke in French, Maya trying her hardest not to laugh at what Farkle said. However, she was caught by surprise when the cheerleaders folded their hands and 'awed' at him, thinking he said something that was incredibly romantic. Maya's face turned stiff while Lucas and Riley smugly smiled at her, the cheerleaders extending their arms to Farkle, and him walking away with them.

"How does telling them they have awful feet get him two cheerleaders?" Maya incredulously wondered.

" _Ce est mieux de penser les choses à travers, que de ne pas les penser travers du tout_ (It's better to think things through, than not to think them through at all)." Lucas told her, Maya pointing a finger at him and shaking her head.

"Can it, Texas." Maya huffed and walked away, Riley appearing impressed that Lucas knew how to speak French.

"I didn't know you knew the language of love." Riley waved her eyebrows, Lucas nodding his head.

"I also speak Spanish, Portuguese, Esperanto and Yoda." Lucas explained. "Impressed with me, you are?"

"Very." Riley couldn't lie, the both of them turning around and making their way back to the cafeteria.

* * *

"I can't believe you dragged me here." Maya groaned as Lucas and Farkle pulled Maya towards the gym.

"I thought you wanted to see Riley as the school mascot." Farkle explained, Maya taking her sketchbook out and sitting on the bleachers. Lucas and Farkle joined her on the benches, the three of them noticing Riley was wearing the mascot costume of John Quincy Adams.

"Wow, Riley looks…like the president." Maya glanced at Lucas, the three of them still observing Riley as she took off her head and waved to them. Maya, Farkle and Lucas waved back, but they were surprised when they were joined by Cory, the four of them gawking at Riley as she put her mascot head back on to join the cheerleaders in a routine.

"Well, you have to hand it to her, Riley sure does have spirit." Lucas stared over at Cory who, glanced proudly at his daughter.

"She sure does." Cory reverted his gaze to the kids on the bleaches. "So, it's only the second day of High School." Cory noticed Maya, Farkle and Lucas were now puzzled. "There's still 726 school days left until you graduate and head off to college. Was High School what you always dreamed of?"

"It's tough." Maya responded. "It's probably one of the toughest things there is."

"But as long as we have each other, we're going to be all right." Farkle added, Lucas's eyes wandering over to Riley and her mascot uniform. He gave a small smile towards Riley before glancing back at Cory.

"High School's going to be one crazy journey sir…" Lucas explained before staring back at Riley. "But there's going to be nothing that will tear us apart. From the day we walk in here to the day we grab our diplomas, we're going to be tightknit…and nothing's going to stop us from taking on the world."

"Good, that's what I want to hear." Cory pointed a finger at them before glancing at Riley, who was busy stretching. "Riley does know that the mascot has to learn the routine of the cheerleaders in case one of them falls and gets hurt, right?" At Cory's words, one of the cheerleaders screamed, the four of them cringing from the sight of the girls clamoring around her and the head cheerleader pointing to Riley.

"This…wasn't the way Riley wanted to become a cheerleader but…congratulations Mr. Matthews…your daughter is now a high school student and on the cheerleading squad….yay…" Maya meekly said as Cory continued cringing, Farkle eventually using his hand to shield his teachers' eyes.

 


	2. 1x02: Girl Meets Cigarettes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley prompts Mays to join the art club at school, but Maya ends up in trouble when she's caught with a cigarette. Farkle aims to join the basketball team in an effort to be "cool" and seeks help from Lucas, who is athletic.

                                                                             

* * *

 

**_ACT 1_ **

* * *

"Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch." Lucas hobbled into the school one morning as Riley looked up from her math book. She noticed Lucas was in some sort of pain, and she immediately became worried when he walked over to her and sat by her locker.

"Lucas? Lucas, what happened to you?" Riley bent down and gazed into his eyes, Lucas letting out a sigh while shuddering slightly.

"I'll tell you what happened. Basketball practice happened." Lucas groaned, Riley rubbing his shoulders slightly. "I love basketball and all but those guys are extremely tough when it comes to drills. I don't think I can feel my legs." Riley couldn't help but feel sorry for him, and she knew that him being on the basketball team was tough but this was the price Lucas had to pay if he wanted to be popular in High School.

"Well, you were the one that wanted to play sports." Riley reminded him, Lucas letting out a sigh. "Remember, it's not worth being popular if it means you're going to hurt yourself or someone else." Lucas chuckled as Riley went into her locker, a pom-pom falling to the floor. Lucas raised an eyebrow towards her as Riley went to pick up the pom-pom, Lucas crossing his arms and letting out a smirk.

"Yes, says the girl that's on the cheerleading squad." Lucas chuckled, Riley pointing a finger at him.

"Hey, I'm on the cheerleading squad because one of the cheerleaders got hurt." Riley responded. "It was highly unfortunate she'll be out for the year with a leg sprain."

"How is she holding up?" Lucas wondered.

"Oh quite well, she's doing the scholastic decathlon so she'll live." Riley replied as she and Lucas started making their way to the lunchroom for breakfast. On the way there, they noticed the art kids that were in Maya's club, hanging around in a corner and talking among themselves. "What do you think girls like that talk about?" Riley wondered, Lucas raising an eyebrow at her. "I mean, they're probably all…paints, oil pastels, markers!"

"Yeah, that would be their conversation if they were in the fifth grade." Lucas reminded her, Riley letting out a smile. "I mean, this is high school. They're probably talking about how Chad from gym class is 'hot'…their words, not mine." Riley playfully nudged him while Maya and Farkle joined them after exiting one of the classrooms.

"What's up weirdoes?" Maya questioned as Riley and Lucas turned around, glancing back towards the art kids.

"Why aren't you hanging with the art kids?" Riley asked. "I mean, they are in your afterschool club, right?"

"Yeah they are, but they aren't my kind of friends." Maya stared at them. "At least I think they aren't my kind of friends. They mainly talk…not enough art."

"You mean you haven't even talked to them?" Lucas stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Maya, how are you going to make friends that aren't us if you don't talk to people?"

"Why should I talk to them? I mean, I have you guys, right?" Maya pointed to Riley, Farkle and Lucas but cringed when she looked at the boys. Finally, she just pointed her finger to Riley and gave her best friend a smile. "I have you, right?"

"Yes, and you're always going to have me." Riley put a hand over her heart before pointing to the art kids. "But it's okay if you make new friends."

"I made friends with the robotics club. Does that count?" Farkle raised his hand, causing Maya to shake her head.

"No, because the robotics club is full of people who don't socialize on a Friday night." Maya smirked. Her attention reverted towards the art girls, her interest piquing in what it would feel like to be in a clique. "You know what; maybe I should go over there and talk to them." Maya declared…but she was immensely shocked when she found she wasn't walking towards them. "Riley?"

"Yep?" Riley asked, Maya appearing almost mortified.

"I can't move my feet." Maya meekly said.

"Here, let me give you a push." Riley walked behind Maya before shoving her towards the art kids, Maya turning around and noticing Riley, Farkle and Lucas were waving at her. Maya groaned and started walking towards them, deciding to take Riley's word and make new friends. Meanwhile, Farkle looked almost bothered by something, which caught Lucas's attention.

"Farkle, what's the matter?" Lucas asked.

"I just realized something…" Farkle turned around and grabbed Lucas's shirt. "I'm going to end up being a loser for the rest of my life! I'm associating with the robotics kids!"

"Farkle, why does it matter what club you join?" Riley questioned. "If people really wanted to hang out with you, they'd like you for you."

"Yeah, there's going to be a problem with that.." Farkle looked away, Riley and Lucas wondering what Farkle did. Instead of asking, Lucas thought of a way to teach Farkle that popularity didn't matter.

"Farkle, I have an idea on how you can be popular." Lucas explained, Farkle's eyes widening and a gleeful cackle escaping his lips.

"Tell me your secret." Farkle leaned closer, Riley simply crossing her arms and looking away.

"Why don't you swing by basketball tryouts this afternoon?" Lucas suggested. "The team still needs reserves and I think you'll be perfect for that."

"Really?" Farkle pumped his fist with excitement. "I'm going to do it; I'm going to try out!" Farkle ran away from both Riley and Lucas, the both of them exchanging glances.

"Do you think he has any shot to make the basketball team?" Riley honestly asked him.

"If we're speaking with all honesty…he has _no_ chance to make the basketball team." Lucas answered. "But don't worry, this is just to teach Farkle a little lesson." Riley and Lucas decided to head to their first class of the day, leaving Maya hanging with the art kids and Farkle preparing for basketball tryouts.

* * *

                                                               

* * *

 

"Can you believe it?" Riley questioned as she and Maya walked along the halls towards one of the classrooms later that afternoon. "We're finally High School freshman, which means we can finally explore the wonders of the world…in health class!" Maya looked up at the classroom and stared back at Riley, wondering how Riley could have so much energy.

"It's health class, the most they're going to teach us is how to eat healthy." Maya groaned as she and Riley entered the room. "I don't need the teacher lecturing that I can have cake but I can't eat it. Why can't I have cake and eat it?"

"Um, they're not literally telling you that you can't have cake. It's figurative." Riley clapped her hands slightly, Maya appearing shocked at Riley's words.

"They put the cake in jail?" Maya put a hand over her mouth. "That's taking it too far!"

"No, no, not _fugitive_ …figurative. It's…well it's kind of…I'll explain later." Riley and Maya sat in the front row of the classroom, but they were surprised by the teacher that was standing before them—it was Cory. " _Dad_?!"

"Mr. Matthews…I thought you teach history…you know, that class we had this morning?" Maya reminded him.

"I know, but apparently I'm the only teacher in this school so, there you go." Cory wrote on the board, turning back as the students started filing in. "I'm also the lunch monitor and I run detention."

"There are only so many hours in the day, Mr. Matthews." Maya opened her notebook to write down a few notes.

"All right, since everyone's here, we're going to get started on today's lesson." Cory picked up a picture of what looked to be a cigarette, showing it to the entire class. "Ladies and gentlemen, your first lesson is a cigarette."

"We're getting a lesson from a cigarette?" Maya pointed towards the picture. "Now I've seen everything."

"As funny as you're trying to be Ms. Hart, cigarettes are no joke." Cory walked around the classroom. "They have nicotine and tobacco, which makes it a highly addictive drug. However, this drug isn't like caffeine. Nicotine and tobacco can cause different forms of cancer, making it dangerous not only to yourself but to those around you. That's why this school has a no cigarette policy, and that's why harsh action is taken when a student is caught with one of these." Riley and Maya saw Cory going to the front of the room, him sitting down at his desk. "Now, does anyone have any questions?"

"I have one." Riley raised her hand, Cory acknowledging she could speak. "Why does the picture of a cigarette have a face on it?"

"Yeah, he looks kind of friendly." Maya added, Cory glancing at the picture.

"He's not friendly." Cory said. "This is what the tobacco company calls a marketing gimmick. They make kids think it's cool to smoke so they market cigarettes with either pictures of a smiling cigarette or they use your favorite celebrities in order to tempt you to use them."'

"I think the celebrities should sue." Maya continued looking at Cory with horror. "That's against their privacy rights."

"The point is, cigarettes are bad for you and I don't ever want to catch any of my students using them." Cory walked up to the desk in front of Riley and Maya, specifically pointing at Riley. "Especially you, little missy who thinks pictures of smiling cigarettes are cute."

"Actually, that was Maya." Riley pointed to Maya who flashed a grin at him.

"I want everyone in this class to repeat after me; I will never touch a cigarette because they are bad for me." Cory pointed his finger to the rest of the class, but almost everyone looked bored with Cory's lecture. "Girls, help me out here."

"I will never touch a cigarette because they are bad for me." Riley and Maya spoke in unison.

"Even though I would probably marry that little smiling cigarette in the picture." Maya added, Cory and Riley snapping their fingers.

"So close." Cory grimaced before the bell rang, the kids getting up from their seats and heading to their next class. "Riley, Maya, can I speak to you two please?"

"Oh no, we're about to get a lecture." Maya sounded fearful, her eyes shifting to the ceiling. "Quick Riles, help me up to the vent so I can climb my way to freedom."

"You're not in trouble." Cory assured them, Maya suddenly feeling at ease. "I just wanted to make sure that I got the point across to you two, that cigarettes are dangerous and they are never to be touched. If you touch a cigarette, I will cut both your hands off."

"What?!" Riley looked down at her hands, interlocking her fingers together. "But I need my hands! How am I supposed to point or eat or cover my nose when I sneeze?"

"I'm not literally going to cut your hands." Cory added, Riley now suddenly feeling at ease. "But you will be in big trouble. You got me?"

"We understand dad." Riley promised him. "We will not touch a cigarette because we know they are bad for us."

"Don't worry Mr. Matthews, you got your lesson through to the two of us." Maya promised, the both of them heading out the door. As soon as the door closed, Riley stared at Maya, her shrugging her shoulders slightly.

"Well, how did it go with the art kids?" Riley asked. "Did they invite you into their friendship circle yet?"

"Riley…no one says friendship circle in High School. It sounds very kindergarten-ish." Maya soothingly told her friend before continuing. "And, no. They kind of refuse to talk to me and I kind of wish they would. I _really_ want them to take me seriously as an artist and…let's face it, I need to discuss art with someone that actually understands it."

"I understand art." Riley pointed a finger to her chest.

"All right, what do you think when you look at the Mona Lisa?" Maya quizzed, Riley's face suddenly appearing blank.

"Mona, who's Lisa?" Riley's questioned proved enough of a point to Maya, Maya flashing her friend a grin and patting her shoulder.

"Exactly kid, exactly." Maya turned around and started making her way towards her next class, Riley skipping down the hall on the way to the gym.

* * *

That afternoon, Farkle entered the gym with almost a glimmer of hope in his eye. On one end of the gym, there were the cheerleaders and they were discussing their next routine. On the other end of the gym, it was the basketball players and they were discussing plays for their first game of the season. Farkle noticed Lucas was on the bench drinking water, him making his way over and sitting down next to him. However, Farkle noticed that while Lucas was drinking water, his eyes were glued to something else…or someone else.

"Lucas?" Farkle cleared his throat, Lucas glancing over at him. "For the love of Farkle, just go tell Riley you like her?"

"What are you talking about Farkle?" Lucas let out a slightly nervous chuckle but masked it as him thinking Farkle was outrageous for asking a question of that sort. "I do not like Riley."

"Yes you do, you _love_ her." Farkle playfully teased, Lucas feeling his cheeks turn red.

"Okay, and even if I liked Riley, I'm not going to risk my friendship with her." Lucas explained, taking another swing of water. "She's too important for me to lose and I can't lose her. I mean, if I lost her, then I'd be forced to lean on Maya's shoulder for comfort…and we all know Maya's not the comforting type."

"But if you don't tell Riley then someone is going to make their move." Farkle reminded him. "And you wouldn't want to sit on the sidelines while Riley was dating someone else."

"Farkle, we're 14. I think that's a little too young for us to date, don't you think?" Lucas scoffed.

"We're in High School." Farkle said. "High School is a brand new ball game than middle school…and here is where girls date guys. Now I'm not saying that you have to tell Riley how you feel today."

"Okay, cool." Lucas sounded relieved as Farkle nodded his head. However, Farkle turned his head towards the cheerleaders and got up from the bench, hoping to create some sort of attention.

"HEY RILEY!" Farkle yelled across the gym, Lucas appearing petrified. "LUCAS WANTS TO TALK TO YOU!" Farkle and Lucas saw Riley walk towards them, Lucas appearing as if he wasn't too happy with Farkle.

"Farkle, why?" Lucas started to say before Riley bounced in front of him, Lucas turning his head and giving a smile. "Why…hello there, Riley?"

"Hey, what did you want to talk to me about?" Riley wondered, Lucas trying to think of something so he didn't have to tell Riley his feelings for her.

"Um…nice…um…shoes." Lucas pointed to Riley's shoes, Riley glancing down at them. "I thought they were so cool and I just had to tell you…where can I buy a pair for my…sister…?"

"You have a sister?" Riley crossed her arms with a smile. "You never told me you had a sister."

"Yeah…you…you never met her, she's in college. She's been there…for longer than my existence." Lucas nervously chuckled as Riley let out a giggle.

"MATTHEWS! We're going to run the drill again!" One of the cheerleaders screamed, Riley turning back towards Lucas and Farkle and waving at them.

"Well, I better get back." Riley pointed towards the cheerleaders. "Cheering awaits." Riley turned back on her heels and went to the cheerleaders, Lucas glancing at Farkle and grimacing towards him.

"You have the perfect chance to tell Riley and you blew it." Farkle got up from the bench with Lucas following.

"Yeah, because telling Riley I love her in a smelly gym is really going to be memorable." Lucas quipped before grabbing a basketball on the rack. "All right, you want to make the team, try to shoot a basket."

"Okay." Farkle grabbed the basketball and threw it towards the hoop, but Lucas looked shocked when the ball actually went inside the basket. Lucas pointed towards the basket and back at Farkle, grabbing another ball and handing it to him.

"I bet you can't do it again." Lucas challenged.

"Challenge accepted." Farkle grabbed the basketball and threw it into the hoop, Lucas now stuffing his hands in his basketball short pockets. "So, did I do good?"

"You're going to be an absolute stud on the basketball team." Lucas patted his back. "You're in."

"YES! I made the team! Thank you, I am Farkle!" Farkle declared but Lucas still had a smug look on his face, something Farkle caught. "Oh no, what's going on now?"

"Well Farkle, you made the team and you're on your way to being popular…but now the real work begins." Lucas put a hand on Farkle's shoulder, staring into space. "Training. Training everywhere."

"I can't wait." Farkle said, taking another basketball and throwing it into the hoop, Lucas glancing back and clapping his hands together once. He couldn't wait for Farkle to see just how tough it was to be popular.

* * *

Maya entered the art room that afternoon for art club, glancing at some of the kids that were there. Maya remembered two of the girls from her first meeting and they weren't much help; one of them was named Sheila and another was named Kristen, but the rest of the students names came as a blur. As Maya entered the room and sat on the stool, Kristen glanced over to her and tapped her shoulder.

"Have we seen you around her before?" Kristen asked, Maya letting out a slightly confused glance.

"I was here last week for the first meeting." Maya reminded her. "Do you not really remember me?"

"Nope." Kristen looked away as Maya started drawing on the canvas, Sheila getting up and taking Maya's piece of paper. Maya turned around and stared at Sheila, getting up from her seat and glaring at her with anger.

"That was my sheet of paper." Maya calmly said, although her face expression told them she was ready to do whatever it took to get it back.

"Oh, so this was your sheet of paper?" Kristen and Sheila laughed, Maya glancing at the both of them. "Maya, I thought you knew that in art club, we don't really do art."

"What?" Maya looked at the name of the club on the board, her eyes glancing back at the two older girls. "How can this not be art club? It says the word "art" in it."

"It says the word art in it, but that doesn't mean this is art club." Sheila nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders; Maya still not comprehending where Sheila was coming from. "Of course, it doesn't surprise me that a freshman doesn't get this club."

"We're some of the coolest kids in school." Kristen circled around Maya, hoping to intimidate the little girl. "And that means when we do things, everyone expects us to uphold an image. You know we've seen you in school and you're always hanging around the three kids who look like they don't belong here. Those aren't your real friends Maya."

"What are you talking about? Riley, Farkle and Lucas are my friends." Maya's anger evaporated as confusion took over. "They were the ones that wanted me to do this art class anyway."

"Why did they want you to do this art class? Because they were tired of hanging around you and they needed you out of their hair?" Sheila asked, Maya shaking her head. "Let's face it; they're all too busy for you. One of them is on the basketball team; the other is a cheerleader and Frackle…"

"Farkle." Maya corrected them. "His name is Farkle and you're wrong. They're not abandoning me; we're just doing our own things."

"You're doing your own things, right…" Kristen smirked. "Do you know what happens when friends from middle school go and do their own things? They end up separated and by graduation day, you're wondering where were your friends that were in middle school? That's how Sheila and I met…because our friends abandoned us and we started our own friendship. This art club is just a way for initiation."

"We let you in because we thought that there was a rebel deep inside you, waiting to get out." Sheila and Kristen smirked. "You're one of us Maya; you're not one of them."

"So you really think that I'm one of you guys?" Maya was surprised that the two girls actually wanted her in their club. "Wow, I…I'm surprised."

"We know you are, but if you want to join us…there's something you have to do." Sheila and Kristen motioned for Maya to follow them, Maya eventually grabbing her backpack and heading towards the bathroom. As Maya opened and closed the door, they saw Sheila and Kristen were going towards their pocket—and they pulled out a pack of cigarettes. Maya blankly stared at the cigarettes in Sheila's hand, finally using her finger to point.

"Those…those are cigarettes." Maya blankly stated.

"No, they're candy." Kristen sarcastically retorted before taking one out of the box and handing it to Maya. "This was how we all got in…and besides, we're in the girls' bathroom so that means that no teacher can find us."

"But…there's a no smoking policy in this school." Maya reminded them.

"And?" Sheila didn't see Maya's point. "Maya, Maya, Maya…you want to be popular in this school, right? Well this is the only way it's going to happen. All the cool kids are doing it. So what do you say, Maya? Are you going to take it and smoke, or get out and we kick you out of art club?" Maya was absolutely stuck. She didn't want to be known as a goody-two-shoes for the rest of her life, but she also didn't want to be kicked out of art club. Maya made a promise to Cory that she wasn't going to smoke and that she wasn't even going to touch a cigarette. Maya knew what the right choice was, and she was going to make it. Maya took the cigarette from Sheila and had every intention of breaking the cigarette in half and throwing it in the toilet, but before she could make her move, the door to the bathroom opened, and it was _Cory_ doing a bathroom check to make sure people weren't cutting class. Cory entered and stared at Maya, Sheila and Kristen, the three of them almost looking petrified with fear, but when Cory saw the cigarette in Maya's hand, he was shocked, even frustrated.

"What in the world is going on here?!" Cory eventually found his voice after the shock wore off, Maya shaking her head to explain her case.

"Maya was smoking in the bathroom, Mr. Matthews." Sheila raised her hand, Kristen nodding her head with her friend. "We were just going to tell her to stop when you came in." Cory looked back to Maya, his hand on his hips and a stern glance appearing on his face.

"Mr. Matthews, that's not true." Maya tried to plead her case, but it almost looked like Cory wasn't going to hear it.

"Really? Because the last time I checked, _you_ were the one holding the cigarette in your hand." Cory grabbed the cigarette from her, his face suddenly turning to hurt. "Maya, after you promised you weren't going to touch a cigarette, you did…and I'm guessing you were going to smoke it too."

"Mr. Matthews, I wasn't going to…" Maya saw Cory's hand go up, almost as if he didn't want to hear anymore.

"You can plead your case to the principal Ms. Hart." Cory really hated that he had to do this, but he motioned for Maya to start taking the walk of shame to the principal's office. Maya hesitated before grabbing her backpack and walking out of the bathroom, her trying her hardest not to cry. As Maya walked towards the principal's office, Riley, Lucas and Farkle walked up to her, but they noticed something was wrong when Maya wasn't saying anything to them. They knew something had happened when they saw Cory walking behind Maya with a disappointed look on his face.

"Dad, what's going on?" Riley asked, Cory stuffing his hands in his pockets and shaking his head, him holding the cigarette up and showing Riley, Farkle and Lucas. "Where…where did you get that?"

"I don't know…why don't you ask Maya?" Cory pointed towards Maya, Riley staring at her best friend with hurt.

"Maya, please tell me my dad is joking and he didn't really find you with the cigarette." Riley almost pleaded. Maya felt the tears fall from her face as Cory put a hand on Maya's shoulder.

"Let's go Maya. To the principal's office we go." Cory led Maya away from Riley, Farkle and Lucas, the three of them staring at each other in astonishment.

"I can't believe it…" Riley muttered.

"I don't believe it." Lucas added.

"Maya couldn't have done this…" Farkle vouched for his friend. "She wouldn't do something this dumb. We need to find whoever gave Maya that cigarette…Maya could get in a lot of trouble for this and it's not fair. Her whole life is on the line right now."

"Farkle, where could we possibly start?" Riley crossed her arms, glancing at him.

"I don't know but maybe we should start with Maya." Farkle walked away from both Riley and Lucas, the two of them nodding their heads. If Farkle was going to find out what was really going on, then both Riley and Lucas were going to help him. They needed to protect Maya…they needed to prevent their friend from getting in serious trouble.

* * *

_**END ACT 1**_

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

"I refuse to believe Maya was smoking." Riley said as she, Lucas and Farkle sat in front of the principal's office. "That's not Maya. Maya would never do something so stupid."

"I don't believe Maya could do something so stupid either." Lucas added, Riley and Farkle staring at him. "I mean sure she calls me Ranger Rick and does a terrible impression of a southern accent, but Maya wouldn't pick up a cigarette knowing it would cause harm to her. Maya has more common sense than that."

"I'm willing to bet it has something to do with those girls that I saw come out of the bathroom after Maya was lugged away by my dad. They probably gave her the cigarette and then she got caught." Riley sighed. "This is all my fault."

"How is Maya being caught with a cigarette your fault?" Farkle pondered.

"Yeah, it wasn't like you handed Maya a cigarette and told her to smoke it." Lucas added.

"But I was the one that told her she had to make new friends." Riley answered. "I pushed her to join the art club and looked what happened. Now she's going to get suspended because of me."

"She's not going to be suspended because of you, she's going to be suspended because of those girls." Lucas assured her. "Riley, your heart was in the right place. Those girls were the ones that were wrong, I promise."

"You really think so?" Riley asked, Lucas getting up from his seat and sliding next to Riley, giving her a softened smile.

"I know so." Lucas's voice was soft which caused Riley to give him a small grin.

"I can't help but wonder what's the 'mystery' in mystery meat." Farkle said out of nowhere, causing Riley and Lucas to stare at him with a muddled expression. The three of them were snapped out of their thoughts when Maya exited the principal's office holding a slip in her hand and Cory walking out after her.

"What happened in there? That did they say?" Riley got up from her seat, walking over to Maya with a worried expression. Maya looked down at the sheet of paper and glanced up at Riley with sadness.

"I was suspended." Maya revealed. "For three weeks...and on top of that, this is going on my permanent record. I'm never going to get into a good art college now."

"You told them you didn't do it, right?" Riley pressed.

"I tried." Maya answered. "But they didn't want to hear it. They said I was caught holding the cigarette so I had to be punished. I told them about the other girls in the bathroom, but the principal said there was no proof they gave me the cigarette." Riley looked at her dad, Cory giving Maya a slightly disappointed look.

"You didn't defend her?" Riley wondered, Cory staring at his daughter with a sigh.

"What did you want me to do, Riley?" Cory questioned. "I walked in the bathroom and saw Maya with the cigarette. I can't just pat her on the back and say, 'You had a cigarette? Oh, it's okay, see you at lunch.' I had to punish her."

"But she didn't do it!" Riley argued. "I know Maya and Maya would never do anything like this."

"I want to believe Maya, Riley...but I can't." Cory gave a slight groan. "I just can't."

"No, it's okay Mr. Matthews." Maya turned around, but her voice didn't sound as if everything was okay. "I expected you not to believe me because you saw what you wanted to see. But just think of this...you've known me for years. Do I seem like the person that would automatically pick up a cigarette and do something this stupid? Something that would force me to lose almost everything I ever worked for?" Maya walked away from everyone while all Riley could do was stare. Her best friend was innocent, she didn't do anything wrong...so why was her father being like this? Riley was going to prove Maya's innocence. She had to.

* * *

Riley sat on her bed that evening as she worked on her homework, but she wasn't expecting someone to knock on the window. Riley looked up and saw Maya there, hoping she could come in just so she and Riley could talk about what happened in school that day. Riley looked towards the door before getting off the bed, making her way to the window and opening it, Maya coming in and sitting down next to Riley on their perch.

"Is your dad here?" Maya asked, Riley nodding her head slowly.

"Yeah, he's trying to teach Auggie how to count to 500 with money." Riley explained. "Something tells me Auggie's going to con him out of $500."

"What makes you think that?" Maya wondered.

"Last time my dad tried teaching him how to count to 200. Guess who lost $200 to a five-year-old?" Riley explained, Maya nodding her head slowly. "So, do you want to tell me what happened in art club today?"

"I didn't smoke the cigarette, Riley..." Maya started to say, but Riley simply gave Maya a hug, Maya gripping onto her friend for dear life. "I promise I didn't do it..."

"I know you didn't." Riley assured her. "I believe you."

"You do?" Maya questioned.

"Of course I do." Riley responded. "I know you'd never do something as dumb as smoke a cigarette. What were you going to do with the cigarette they gave you?"

"I was going to throw it down the toilet...but that was before your father came in the bathroom." Maya truthfully said. "I know cigarettes are bad for you...and I joke about it a lot, but I can truthfully say that I will never smoke one. Cigarettes kind of hit close to home for me. My uncle used to smoke a lot and he got colorectal cancer. The doctor's couldn't save him and he eventually died. So, I know cigarettes cause nothing but trouble. Someone isn't cool just because they smoke them, it can really hurt you and cause you to die if you're not careful. Life is too precious to throw away, and I'd never do that. Never."

"I know." Riley smiled. "And I know those girls gave you the cigarette and framed you for it. And I'm going to do whatever it takes to prove your innocence."

"You'd really do that for me?" Maya asked, Riley nodding her head.

"You don't give up on a friend." Riley answered. "And I'm sure Lucas and Farkle will agree with me. Those girls aren't your friends. You have three great friends in your corner right here...and we'd never leave you for anything." Riley hugged Maya once again as Riley thought how she was going to prove Maya's innocence. It was going to be hard to prove it, but she was determined. Friends never gave up one each other, right?

* * *

"All right Lucas, I'm ready!" Farkle yelled as the two of them were at a nearby basketball court, not too far from where Farkle lived.

"Okay, so you're good enough to make the team, but now the real work comes in." Lucas held the basketball in his hand, staring at Farkle at the same time. "You have to be so good that the basketball team can't drop you. If you play good, then you're going to be popular, just like you wanted."

"Yes, popular!" Farkle grinned ear to ear before grabbing the basketball from Lucas, throwing it to the basket and appearing surprised the ball went in. "I'm going to be so popular! And once I'm popular, I'm going to rule the school with an iron fist!"

"You're going to be popular, not dictator of the school." Lucas gently tried to tell him.

"Ooh, is that job still open?" Farkle replied, Lucas shaking his head at Farkle's words. However, Farkle ignored Lucas's answer when he threw the ball into the basket again. Lucas was a little worried popularity was going to go into Farkle's head, and there was a huge possibility that he might have created a monster.

* * *

Riley ran down the stairs the next morning with a pencil and paper in hand, glancing around before heading towards the door, opening it and spotting Maya at the entranceway. While Riley was fully energized, Maya looked as if she was going to fall down from exhaustion.

"Riley, was there a reason that you called me here?" Maya released a yawn. "It's six in the morning."

"There's bacon on the table." Riley pointed, Maya's eyes immediately widening and a smile creeping on her face.

"I do love bacon." Maya walked past Riley and sat down at the table, grabbing some bacon and putting it in bread. Riley followed her friend to the table and sat across from her, opening her notepad and leaning close to her.

"Okay, so I was up all night trying to figure out how I was going to expose those girls for the frauds they are and I have the perfect plan." Riley saw Maya glance at her as Riley pointed to the sheet of paper in front of her. "I was watching the show _Cops_ and one of the things they do are sting operations. I was thinking either me, Farkle or Lucas can go undercover and we expose those girls while gaining their trust."

"Sorry Riles, but none of you guys can pull off hanging out with Kristen and Sheila." Maya apologetically stated, taking a bite of her bacon sandwich. "They're ruthless and they'll see right through your goody attitude."

"Then teach us how to be you." Riley pleaded, Maya raising an eyebrow.

"Riley, I don't know..." Maya sounded uncertain. "Teaching you how to be is going to be hard because I'm the only me and being me right now is not fun for me. Do you get me?"

"No." Riley responded with a smile on her face.

"There has to be another way to get back at those girls instead of doing a sting operation." Maya sighed.

"Look, I have a strong feeling this is going to work, Maya." Riley said. "I just need you to trust me. You do trust me, right?" Maya contemplated for a few moments before finally nodding her head, putting a hand on Riley's shoulder and giving her a grin.

"I trust you. But if you're going to do the sting operation, you have to be convincing. Smiling every ten seconds isn't going to make Sheila and Kristen think you're serious." Maya softly said, her eyes darting to Riley's bacon and eggs. "Are you going to eat that?" Riley looked down at her food before shaking her head, motioning for Maya to take it.

* * *

Lucas entered school that morning with a basketball under his arm, waving to some of the cheerleaders as they walked by, but Lucas's face turned to surprise when he noticed the basketball coming out from under his arm, his head turning around and realizing it was Farkle who had done so. Lucas raised an eyebrow as Farkle walked over to the basketball, picking it up and spinning the basketball with his finger, earning the attention of everyone in the room.

"Lucas Friar!" Farkle bellowed with a cunning smile on his face, Lucas crossing his arms with interest. "Last night I had a dream on how I was going to be popular and I realized the only way I was going to be popular was if I beat one of the most popular guys in school in a one-on-one game of basketball. I, Farkle Minkus challenge you...to a duel!" Everyone darted their eyes towards Lucas, Lucas stuffing his hands in his pockets with interest.

"It's just called a basketball game." Lucas tried to correct him.

"SILENCE!" Farkle put his hand up to prevent Lucas from speaking. "I must be popular in High School...and the only way is beating you. Do you accept my challenge of playing basketball or not?" Lucas looked around before nodding his head slowly, thinking what was the worst that could happen by playing a friendly game of basketball with Farkle.

"Sure, I'll play you." Lucas agreed, Farkle turning around.

"Good, then you shall meet me in the gym at 4:00 p.m. Then we will see who is the better basketball player." Farkle started marching down the halls as Lucas shook his head, making his way to his locker. "I AM FARKLE!" Lucas heard Farkle scream before Farkle turned the corner, Lucas opening his locker and grabbing his books. Lucas didn't expect Riley to run up towards him and poke him, causing him to turn towards her with a muddled look.

"You're not going to challenge me to a basketball game too, are you?" Lucas asked. "Because I was just challenged by Farkle..."

"No." Riley shook her head.

"Thank goodness." Lucas let out a relieved sigh. "Farkle's quest in becoming popular has really gone to his head. I need to beat him so I can bring him down to Earth."

"Can your quest to beat him wait until 4:00 p.m., LeBron?" Riley asked, Lucas clearing his throat. "We need to help Maya right now."

"Right, what's the plan?" Lucas asked, Riley pulling Lucas towards the art room, the two of them seeing Sheila and Kristen sitting on the stools. "They look mean!" Lucas hissed to Riley, but Riley kept her eyes on the girls, knowing those two were responsible for it.

"Of course they're mean, they got Maya in trouble." Riley mentioned before taking out a beret and placing it on her head.

"Not that the hat doesn't look nice on you, but what are you doing with that?" Lucas asked, Riley pressing a small button on the side of the hat.

"It's not just for fashion." Riley gave a smile. "Farkle put a camera in the hat so it can record everything I do. We're going to show those girls that they messed with the wrong chick."

"Okay, so like every good undercover, we need a story." Lucas thought, Riley nodding her head at his words.

"You're my boyfriend." Riley said which caused Lucas's cheeks to turn red and his eyes to widen.

"I...I...I...ah...eh... _boyfriend_?" Lucas stammered, Riley letting out a chuckle.

"Yes, that's the cover story. You're my boyfriend and we're looking for a cigarette to smoke. Apparently we learned from Maya that there's some cigarettes in the art room...and Sheila and Kristen are the only ones that have them." Riley explained but she noticed Lucas's face was still red from what Riley said.

"I just think...boyfriend...pretending..." Lucas was tongue-tied which Riley had to admit was kind of cute. After a moment, Lucas cleared his throat, grabbing Riley's hand and interlacing their fingers together. "If we're going to be pretend boyfriend and girlfriend we have to sell it."

"Right..." Riley let out a nervous chuckle. "My hands are sweaty, sorry."

"It's...okay..." Lucas couldn't help but let out a nervous chuckle himself, the both of them entering the art room and making their way toward Sheila and Kristen.

"Well, well, well...look what we have here." Kristen stared at Lucas and Riley, although her gaze was fixated on their hands. "A couple of lovebirds entered the wrong room."

"Right...lovebirds...cause that's what we are." Lucas continued to nervously chuckle before Riley nudged him in the ribs.

"We need a hookup." Riley said, Kristen and Sheila giving Riley a smirk.

"A hookup?" Kristen asked, Lucas and Riley nodding their heads.

"We heard you had the best cigarettes in school, and we need to let off some steam." Lucas said. "We have exams...a lot of exams...and we need to relax."

"Yep, we heard you two were the best." Riley said, Sheila and Kristen glancing at each other with a smirk. "So what do you say, are you willing to hook us up?" Sheila and Kristen considered it, finally getting up from their seats and nodding their heads.

"Sure, we'll hook you up." Kristen went into her backpack but Riley shook her head.

"We were wondering if we could do the deal in the bathroom." Riley asked, Kristen and Sheila staring at each other.

"You want to do the deal in the bathroom?" Sheila asked, Lucas putting an arm around Riley's shoulder.

"Do you have a problem with what my girlfriend wants?" Lucas asked, Riley letting out a slight giggle at Lucas's question. Kristen and Sheila relented before motioning for the both of them to head towards the bathroom. Riley and Lucas gave each other a fist-pump once the two girls left the room before quickly following them to the restroom. Sheila and Kristen opened the door to the restroom and walked in, Lucas and Riley following and closing the door behind them. Lucas looked around once he realized he was in the girls' bathroom, a smile appearing on his face. "So this is what the girls bathroom looks like. It smells good in here."

"All right, here's your cigarettes." Kristen took them out of her backpack, handing one of them to Riley but before Riley could grab it, the door opened to the bathroom stall and out came Maya and Farkle, the two of them crossing their arms and Sheila and Kristen appearing shocked. "What is going on here?"

"Yeah, I thought we took care of you." Sheila added, pointing her finger towards Maya. "I'm surprised you were only suspended. Once we finish you, you'll be expelled and you won't be the primo artist at this school."

"Wait, that's what giving me the cigarettes was about?" Maya shook her head with confusion. "You wanted to get rid of me?"

"Why would you want to get rid of Maya?" Farkle asked, Riley and Lucas giving Sheila and Kristen a hardened look.

"Because they're jealous of Maya's talent and when Maya got the offer to go abroad, they wanted Maya gone so they'd get an offer too." Lucas responded. "And they'd do whatever it took to get Maya out of their hair." Maya crossed her arms and glared at the two girls, Kristen and Sheila giving a haughty smirk.

"You can't prove we did what we did." Sheila said, Riley and Lucas giving each other the same smirk the two girls were giving each other.

"Oh, never underestimate the power of technology." Riley said. With a snap of both her and Lucas's fingers, the stall to another door opened, and out came Cory, who simply waved at the two teenagers.

"Hello girls, I'm Mr. Matthews and it seems to me you've been caught." Cory's smile disappeared as he pointed to Sheila and Kristen. "To the principal's office, now." Sheila and Kristen stared at each other before walking out the door, Cory turning to them and stuffing his hands in his pockets. "It's a good day to be me." Cory's face turned serious as he looked to Maya, him walking over to her and giving her an apologetic glance. "Maya, I don't know how many times or ways I could say...I'm sorry. I was wrong and I should have known you wouldn't have done something so stupid. You're better than that. You're better than them." Maya gave an appreciative look to Cory before walking over to Riley and putting an arm around her best friend's shoulder.

"I had great friends." Maya replied. "They're always there for me and they'd never abandon me even when I'm at my lowest. I don't need to make new friends, not as long as I have them." Maya and Riley hugged while Cory crossed his arms with a smile, but something was bothering him as he looked at Lucas and Farkle.

"Um, you do realize that you're in the girls bathroom, right?" Cory asked, Farkle and Lucas glancing at each other before staring at Cory.

"We know, and I must say it's wonderful in here." Farkle replied, with Cory simply giving a chuckle.

"Well, I'm off to discipline...and you four should be off to your next class." Cory said to them before leaving the bathroom, the four of them turning to each other once the door to the restroom closed.

"Is he going to be our teacher when we step foot in that classroom because you know that always seems to happen?" Maya asked, Riley simply giggling at her friend's question and giving her another hug.

"Let's not question it." Riley said. "At least we have someone who's willing to look out for us when we can't look out for each other, right?" Maya nodded her head as she started leaving the bathroom, heading to her next class with a grin. When the door closed, Riley looked over to Lucas and Farkle, motioning for the three of them to follow her, but as Farkle left, Lucas cleared his throat, causing Riley to look back at him and give him a smile.

"I must say it was fun pretending to be your boyfriend for the undercover sting." Lucas held out his hand in a professional tone, Riley nodding her head and shaking his hand back. "I hope we get to pretend again sometime."

"It was fun." Riley admitted, feeling a blush creep on her cheeks. She turned around and walked away, leaving Lucas standing in the middle of the bathroom by himself. He cleared his throat and stuffed his hands in his pockets, thinking of the words he wanted to say to Riley, but just couldn't.

"I love you, Riley Matthews." Lucas said to himself before he walked out of the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

* * *

That afternoon in the gym, Riley and Maya sat on the bleachers with the rest of the cheerleading squad and the basketball team remembering that Farkle had challenged Lucas to a one-on-one basketball game. Even Cory had to watch this game, as he sat next to Riley, the three of them noticing Lucas doing his warm-up stretches.

"It's hard to believe but I feel really bad for Farkle right now." Cory said, Riley and Maya patting Cory's back.

"You don't have to." Maya replied. "Farkle's quite good at this. He just thinks he's better than Lucas." Riley looked at Lucas for a moment, deciding to get up from her position on the bleachers and make her way towards him.

"Are you nervous champ?" Riley asked, Lucas shuddering and nodding his head.

"Farkle's good. I'm not going to underestimate him." Lucas replied, Riley shaking her head.

"He's good, but you're better." Riley said, Lucas raising an eyebrow and giving her a grin.

"What makes you think that?" Lucas wondered. Riley leaned up and gave him a peck on his cheek, Lucas trying his hardest not to smile like an idiot.

"Because I believe in you." Riley simply stated before turning around and making her way to Maya. Cory on the other hand looked stunned at what he saw, him glancing at Riley while pointing a finger at him.

"It meant nothing, don't worry about it." Maya told Cory, but Riley couldn't say the peck on Lucas's cheek didn't mean anything. It actually did mean something. Of course, she didn't get a chance to elaborate when Farkle came in wearing a blue cape with the words FM on it, walking towards Lucas and pointing a finger at him.

"Prepare to beg for mercy." Farkle said, but Lucas shrugged his shoulders at Farkle, getting into a crouching position while waiting for the referee to blow the whistle. Just as the referee was going to do so, Farkle's eyes widened and he grabbed his calf, causing him to let out a holler and Lucas to appear confused. "I'M BEGGING FOR MERCY! I HAVE THIS STRANGE HURTING SENSATION IN MY CALF! WHAT IS IT?!" Lucas looked over at Riley and Maya before back at Farkle, nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders.

"It's called a cramp." Lucas explained. "You get it when you don't drink enough water and..."

"I don't need you to explain it to me any further!" Farkle yelled, Lucas putting his hands up and releasing a sigh.

"Well, you're going to get what you wanted...you wanted to be popular...and you'll be popular as the bench player who got a cramp trying to play a one-on-one basketball game wearing a cape." Lucas said, but Farkle felt sort of embarrassed.

"Being popular is painful." Farkle groaned.

"Being popular's not worth it." Lucas added. "But, think of it this way...at least you were popular for just being yourself."

"Yeah, you're right..." Farkle grinned for a moment before the pain returned. "I'd give you a bro-hug but my leg is in dire pain right now." Two nurses came onto the court and picked Farkle up, leading him out of the gym as Lucas stuffed his hands in his pockets. Well, that was one way of proving his point to Farkle. Lucas noticed Riley and Maya walking up to him, Maya patting Lucas's shoulder before giving him a smirk.

"Congrats Ranger Rick, you won a basketball game that didn't begin because Farkle had a cramp in his leg." Maya stated.

"This feels like a very hollow victory." Lucas muttered before shrugging his shoulders. "I'll take it." Lucas walked over to the bench to get his belongings before Riley and Maya linked their arms.

"I think this calls for a celebration." Riley said. "Bacon at my house?"

"Oh, you know how much I love bacon." Maya grinned, the two girls walking out of the gym arm and arm, making their way to Riley's house so they could celebrate their recent victory. Maya may not have had all the friends in the world, but like Riley said, she had three friends that loved and cared for her and for Maya having three friends was just enough.


	3. 1x03: Girl Meets Makeup

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In an effort to impress Lucas, Riley decides to wear makeup despite Topanga's objections, but things go awry when Farkle's makeup line refuses to come off Riley's face. Topanga becomes frustrated when Ava only wants to do things she likes and tries to coax Ava into trying things Auggie likes as well.

                                                                             

* * *

 

**_ACT 1_ **

* * *

If there was one thing Riley could admit to herself, it was she loved her life as a freshman at John Quincy High School. Sure the freshman were usually ridiculed into oblivion and the seniors were able to convince the freshman that they needed to work their way up the food chain, but it was different for Riley. For one thing, she was a cheerleader (although she was originally the mascot) and just being a cheerleader was able to give Riley leverage above the other freshman. She wasn't picked on as much and she somewhat had friends on the cheerleading squad. The weren't Maya, Lucas and Farkle, but they were still somewhat friendly to Riley. Riley entered the gym with her bag on her shoulder as she noticed the cheerleaders glancing at the basketball players who were practicing for their upcoming game. Riley placed her bag on the bench and watched the girls stare at the boys, with Riley tapping one of the cheerleader's shoulders which caused the senior cheerleader to glance at her.

"Why are we just staring at the boys?" Riley questioned, the senior cheerleader turning back to the basketball players. "Aren't we supposed to be preparing for Cheerleading Sectionals?"

"Well yeah, but never hurts to stare at some yummy looking players." The senior cheerleader asked. "I mean look at them, especially that Lucas Friar dreamboat. Sure, he's a freshman but _.._.look at him. I heard he's from Texas and guys from Texas are always quite a catch."

"Tell me about it. He's super yummy." The sophomore cheerleader chimed in, although Riley furrowed her eyebrows at the girls hitting on Lucas. She wasn't quite sure why, but she felt extremely uncomfortable with the girls talking about Lucas that way. Lucas was one of her friends, and she didn't want anyone referring to Lucas as _yummy_ or...a _catch_.

"Hey, Lucas is a lot of things!" Riley said in a matter of fact tone. "He's dashing, charming, perfect and adorable but he's not _yummy_."

"Oh that's what you think." The senior cheerleader smirked. "I'm going to make my move on Lucas. I mean, what's harm, right? The worst he can say is no, but...look at me. There's no way that Lucas can say no. I'm gorgeous." Riley widened her eyes at the senior cheerleader, and she even slightly panicked when the senior cheerleader motioned for the sophomore cheerleader to hand her a multi-colored bag. "Time to put my best face on." The senior cheerleader gave a smirk as she opened the bag, Riley appearing amazed when she noticed the cheerleader had a bag full of makeup. Riley was still young so she never completely understood the concept of makeup, but all she knew was that her favorite movie and T.V. stars wore it and it made them look stunning on the red carpet.

"Why are you going to put on make-up to impress Lucas?" Riley innocently questioned, causing the senior cheerleader to stare at Riley with a haughty smirk.

"It's simply Railey...," The senior cheerleader answered.

"Riley." Riley corrected her.

"Yeah, like I care." The senior cheerleader answered before rolling her eyes. "If there's one thing a boy likes it's a beautiful girl, and the only way a girl is jaw dropping beautiful is if they wear tons of makeup. So if I put this on, Lucas will fall under my spell and he'll totally want to go out on a date with me." Riley didn't seem to like the idea of the senior cheerleader falling in love with Lucas, and she surely didn't want Lucas to fall for her as well. She watched as the senior cheerleader put on powder, glancing in to the mirror before closing her bag and handing it to the sophomore cheerleader. "There, I think I'm ready for my close-up." The senior cheerleader started walking towards the basketball team as Riley's eyes widened. But as threatened as Riley was, her mind was also whirring. So the key to boys liking her was wearing makeup? Riley gave a sly smile as the other cheerleaders watched the senior, a plot formulating in Riley's young mind. She was going to impress Lucas all right. And she knew just how she was going to do it.

* * *

                                                               

* * *

 

"F! F! F! F! F!' Cory said as he sat in front of the couch while holding a stack of papers. At first glance it would seem as if Cory was grading papers and giving everyone an F...but it turned out he was simply watching _Wheel of Fortune_. "Goodness, there's an F in the puzzle! Why can't they hear me?! Are these people deaf?" Cory leaned back on the sofa as the wheel finally stopped spinning, Cory's eyes widening as the contestant was about to guess a letter.

" _F?"_ The contestant questioned.

" _Oh, so sorry Cassandra...but there's no F_." The announcer sounded solemn as Cory's furrowed his eyebrows.

"Okay, that's just cruel." Cory grabbed the remote and changed the channel, the door opening and Riley entering with a determined look.

"Dad, where's mom?" Riley crossed her arms, Cory glancing at her before looking towards the bedroom.

"Topanga! Your child wants you!" Cory shouted. As if on cue, Topanga exited the bedroom and rolled her eyes at her husband. Last time she checked, Riley and Auggie were _their_ children...but in Cory's mind Riley was only Topanga's child during certain situations.

"Oh, so because Riley wants something she's suddenly _my_ child." Topanga couldn't help but jest before she glanced at her daughter. "What's the matter sweetie? Homework issues?"

"Nope." Riley shook her head.

"Friend issues?" Topanga guessed again.

"Nuh-uh." Riley once again shook her head.

"Wait, I know. Boy trouble." Topanga snapped her fingers, but Cory glared at his wife with uncertainty.

"No." Cory answered instead of Riley, causing Riley to cross her arms towards her father. Topanga once again ignored her husband before giving her daughter a smile, as Topanga became suddenly intrigued in what Riley's issue was.

"So if none of those are the problem, then what's the matter?" Topanga asked.

"Mom, dad...there comes a time in a young girl's life where she starts experiencing things, and she..." Riley started to say before Cory put his fingers in his ears.

"La, la, la, la, la, la. I can't hear you! La, la, la, la." Cory spoke in a loud voice while Topanga and Riley stared at him. After Cory caught the girls were glancing at him, he took his fingers out of his ears and pointed towards Riley. "What? I know the deal. I'm not interested in hearing you give us 'the girl talk'."

"All right, Riley. Maybe it'd be for the best that we ignore your father." Topanga suggested before she gave a faux sympathetic look. "He's going through a delicate time right now."

"Yes I am." Cory grabbed the pillow and held it close to him. "I'm feeling...feelings that I never felt before and I'm in a very sensitive state." Riley rolled her eyes before walking towards the kitchen, Topanga following her and Riley turning towards her mother.

"All right, I'm going to come out and say it." Riley folded her hands. "I'm going to tell you exactly what's on my mind, and I need you to say yes."

"Okay." Topanga shrugged her shoulders with nonchalance.

"I want to wear makeup." Riley blurted out.

"No." Topanga immediately replied as Riley let out a sigh.

"Why can't I wear make-up?" Riley wondered as Topanga walked towards the fridge and started inspecting what she was going to make for dinner.

"Because Riley, girls your age shouldn't worry about makeup. You should be worrying about school work and friendships and dealing with your father/teacher." Topanga glanced over at the couch as she noticed her husband was still clutching onto the pillow. Topanga's eyes went back to her daughter as Riley crossed her arms. "You're beautiful just the way you are and you don't need makeup. If a boy is going to like you, then they have to like you for you. Not for the gunk that's on your face."

"But you wear makeup all the time." Riley brought up as Topanga nodded her head.

"Yes, I do. But that's because I'm the adult." Topanga replied.

"So how many years do I have to wait before I can wear makeup?" Riley pondered, Topanga thinking for a moment. She had to wonder how she was going to tell her daughter that makeup wasn't the best thing for her, but how was she going to give her daughter an exact date when she knew Riley was extremely persistent?

"How many years?" Topanga meekly asked, trying to walk around Riley as she thought long and hard. "Four...till...college." Topanga finally turned around only to notice Riley's eyes were widened.

"Four till college?" Riley exclaimed.

"Four till college." Topanga briskly replied, Riley crossing her arms and walking over to the kitchen table. She didn't get a chance to reply when the door to the house opened and Maya entered, pointing to Riley as she motioned towards Riley's room with her other hand.

"I need to talk to you." Maya pulled Riley away before Topanga heard the door to Riley's room close, her glancing at Cory and nodding her head slowly.

"I think that went pretty well." Topanga couldn't help but smile, but she noticed Cory was rocking back and forth, staring at his wife with the pillow _still_ in his hand.

"Do you mind? I'm going through a sensitive time here." Cory pouted which caused Topanga to go back towards the kitchen in order to make dinner. Sometimes, it felt like Topanga was raising three children instead of two.

* * *

Once Riley entered her bedroom, she noticed Maya was sitting by the window, which was their sacred place ever since they were in middle school. They had been through a lot since then, but Riley didn't have time to go through memory lane. Maya needed something and it seemed important.

"Okay, I have a problem." Maya clapped her hands.

"So do I." Riley walked to the window and sat down alongside her friend.

"I think my problem is pretty substantial." Maya gave a light chuckle although Riley put her hand up.

"I think my problem is bigger than your problem." Riley couldn't help but chuckle back.

"Wait, do you even know what my problem is?" Maya's face turned serious as Riley glanced back at her friend.

"No? Do you know what _my_ problem is?" Riley countered.

"No." Maya and Riley sat there in silence for a few moments before Maya cleared her throat, her folding her hands and staring at Riley with interest. "All right, what's your problem, kid?"

"My mom won't let me wear makeup, even after a senior cheerleader used it in order to get Lucas's attention!" Riley spoke quickly which caused Maya to furrow her eyebrows. "So, do you want to explain to me your problem?"

"Yeah." Maya crossed her arms and pouted. "I can't see my forehead."

"Why is seeing your forehead important?" Riley questioned.

"Because how am I supposed to know how beautiful it is if I can't see it?" Maya responded, Riley rolling her eyes. Maya decided to get back to Riley's issue, which caused her to give her friend a sympathetic glance. "Riley, why do you want to wear makeup? You don't need it. You're stunning."

"I know but I don't want that senior cheerleader to get Lucas's attention because what if Lucas falls for her just because she wore makeup and I didn't?" Riley argued, Maya nodding her head slowly. "I mean, she's beautiful and I'm just Riley. Lucas would never go for 'just Riley'."

"Come on, I'm sure you have a million beautiful qualities as Riley." Maya answered. "Makeup isn't going to make Bucky McBoing Boing fall for that senior cheerleader. He likes _you_."

"I don't know, that cheerleader seemed so confident. Maya, just once I want to know what it feels like to be beautiful. I want to know what it feels like to walk through the halls at school and have everyone stare at me. I want everyone to think I'm beautiful and the only way I'm going to do that is if I get the chance to wear makeup in front of Lucas." Riley gave Maya puppy dog eyes which caused Maya to sympathetically glance at her friend. She knew Riley would never ask for anything unless it was important, and there was something about wearing makeup that made Riley believe this situation was important. Maya let out a sigh before giving her friend a loving smile.

"All right, I'll help you put on make up so Ranger Rick can see how beautiful you truly are." Maya's smile faded as a devilish grin appeared, causing Riley to become intrigued. "And I know just the way to do it. Your mom said you couldn't wear _makeup_. But what if you came up with your own creation and it wasn't makeup. What if it was something different?" As soon as Maya asked, Farkle was on the fire escape and he stuck his head through the window with a flirtatious smirk.

"Ladies, how goes it?" Farkle stared at both Riley and Maya, the both of them glancing at him with a devilish look. "Wait, why are you staring at me like that?"

"Farkle, we need your not so freakish brain for an extremely freakish plot we have." Maya briskly answered. "Riley wants to wear makeup and the only person that seems smart enough to come up with a brand of makeup that's not makeup is you. So what do you say? Will you help us makeup Riley?" Riley flashed Farkle her signature smile before Farkle put a hand on his hip.

"It depends. What's in it for me?" Farkle asked.

"I don't know, what do you want?" Maya wondered.

"A kiss." Farkle's eyes immediately brightened.

"No." Maya shook her head.

"A hug?" Farkle tried again.

"Not in a million years." Maya shook her head.

"A quick hug that's not really a hug that only ends with a pat on the back?" Farkle tried once more. Maya knew Farkle wasn't going to give up on this, which caused her to let out an exasperated sigh.

"Fine, one back tap." Maya pointed a finger at him. "But I'm going to need to disinfect my hands after I touch you."

"Farkle will get more than a back tap out of you. All right, I'll help." Farkle motioned for Riley and Maya to exit the window and head up the fire escape, the two girls smiling at each other and following the young scientist to his lab. After all, they had some makeup to create!

* * *

With Riley and Maya in Riley's room (or so Topanga believed), it gave Topanga a chance to finish some work that she was doing for a case. There was peace and quiet around the house, and part of it may of had to do with Cory going to sleep after his 'delicate' phase tuckered him out. Topanga shook her head while chuckling at her husband's antics before going back towards her paperwork, but she noticed her son Auggie and his friend Ava Morganstein walking hand in hand. Topanga never liked Ava, and she sometimes questioned her son's taste in friends, but as the mother she had to let Auggie grow and make his own choices, even if that included which friends he wanted to have. Topanga pretended to work while Ava and Auggie were in the living room, although she was hearing their conversation...and she didn't like where it was going.

"Auggie, it's time to watch _my_ favorite T.V. shows, and then we're gonna talk about _me_ more and then we're gonna play _my_ favorite games." Ava gave him a smile as Auggie returned the grin. All Topanga could do was roll her eyes as she attempted to get back to her work.

"Okay, that sounds like fun." Auggie sat down on the couch as Ava followed along with him, but Topanga found what Auggie and Ava were going to do quite bothersome. Topanga couldn't remember the last time they did something _Auggie_ liked, and she also couldn't understand why Auggie enjoyed being pushed around so much by that little girl. "After we talk about you, watch your favorite T.V. shows and play your favorite games, what do you want to do?" Auggie asked.

"Then we're going to eat my favorite food." Ava grinned, Auggie immediately pumping his fist.

"All right, this is shaping up to be the best afternoon _ever_!" Ava clapped her hands at Auggie's enthusiasm, but Topanga had quite enough which caused her to close her book and walk over towards Auggie and Ava.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help but listen word for word, but it seems we're doing a lot of things that _Ava_ wants to do." Topanga gave a slight chuckle. "Is there a reason you guys do everything _Ava_ wants and nothing that _Auggie_ wants?"

"Because Topanga...," Ava haughtily said as she got down from the sofa, glaring at Topanga before flashing her million dollar smile. " _I'm Ava Morganstein!_ " Topanga hated it when Ava sang her name, but Auggie seemed to always enjoy it.

"Isn't she brilliant?" Auggie gushed, Ava once again smiling at him.

"Oh yeah." Topanga sardonically answered. "But I have a small problem because you guys always do the things _you_ want to do." Topanga gave a faux grin to Ava. "You know Ava, you might find what Auggie does interesting. Why don't you try it and see if you like it?"

"You want me to try what Auggie likes?" Ava didn't sound interested, although Auggie was giving his mother a look as if she was embarrassing him.

"Mom, it's only polite to do what the lady says." Auggie slightly argued, while Topanga kept her eyes on Ava.

"I'm just saying, you and Auggie doing the same things is going to eventually bore you." Topanga shrugged her shoulders. "I just want you both to have some variety. So how about instead of watching your favorite T.V. show, Ava...," Topanga went for the remote and changed the television station to one of Auggie's favorite T.V. shows. "We try watching what Auggie likes?" Ava glared at Topanga while Topanga put the remote down, going back towards the table and taking a seat. "Have fun kids." Ava continued glaring at Topanga before taking a seat next to Auggie, Auggie noticing that Ava was completely unhappy.

"Do you want to watch your favorite show?" Auggie asked Ava, which caused Topanga to widen her eyes and glance back at Auggie.

"I would _love_ to." Ava took the remote and put it back on the channel where her favorite T.V. show was on, Topanga trying her hardest not to show her disdain.

"She's only here until Auggie goes to college..." Topanga said to herself, although she felt like crying because college for Auggie felt so far away. "Oh gosh, I'm stuck with her for 11 more years!" Topanga covered her eyes with her hands, causing her to let out a few sobs. She didn't care if Auggie loved spending time with Ava...every time Ava stepped foot into the house, she made Topanga absolutely miserable.

* * *

"Are you sure this is going to work, Farkle?" Riley asked as she and Maya sat in Farkle's bedroom, noticing he was playing with some test tubes. "I mean, making makeup isn't as easy as we think and it could go all wrong."

"Riley, Farkle is a genius." Farkle put his hand up which caused Riley and Maya to stare at each other. "Farkle knows exactly what he is doing. And Farkle is done." Farkle finished playing with the test tubes before turning to Riley, Riley innocently blinking and Farkle handing her a bag full of his specially made makeup. "There we go, one order of makeup just for Riley in order to impress Lucas."

"Wait, aren't you going to test it?" Maya asked, but at the moment Riley didn't care.

"Give me, give me, give me!" Riley took the bag and smiled at Farkle, seeing he was proud of his work. "Farkle, thank you so, so much."

"You're quite welcome Riley." Farkle said with Riley staring at the bag of makeup. "Now I believe there's payment in order." Riley bent down and gave Farkle a quick kiss on his cheek which prompted him to smile widely and Maya to shake her head with annoyance.

"Oh brother." Maya glanced down at her cell phone. She heard a thud noise which caused her to look up and notice Farkle was on the floor, probably due to the effects of Riley's small but gratifying kiss. "Farkle down. Maya out." Maya got up from Farkle's bed and went out his window, with Riley becoming torn on whether to help him. After a few moments of contemplating, Riley helped him up and sat him in a chair, patting his head and going towards the window to crawl up the fire escape back to her bedroom.

* * *

The next morning at school, Riley asked Maya to meet her in the school bathroom. She wanted to try the makeup on before cheerleading practice that afternoon with hopes of getting Lucas's attention. Riley paced back and forth, but she finally relaxed when Maya opened the bathroom door and gave her best friend a raised eyebrow.

"Okay Riley, what was so important that you had to drag me here?" Maya pondered, Riley pulling her towards the mirror and holding out the makeup that Farkle made the other day. "You want me to help you put on your makeup?"

"Please and thank you." Riley nodded her head, Maya giving her best friend a small smile

"All right, but I still don't think you need this stuff." Maya said, putting some of the makeup on Riley's face while Riley beamed. "You're beautiful without it, but if this is what you really want to do in order to impress Ranger Rick, then I guess it wouldn't hurt." Riley patted Maya's shoulder while Maya got to work, but when Maya accidentally colored outside Riley's lip, she tried to smudge it off...only to realize, it _wouldn't_ smudge off at all. Maya tried to smudge it a little harder, but the lip tint had simply spread. "Uh-oh." Maya blinked innocently, Riley glancing at her with confusion.

"Uh-oh, what? I don't like uh-oh." Riley worried. "What's going on that you had to say 'uh-oh'?"

"Well Riley, do you want to hear the good news or the bad news?" Maya asked.

"Good first." Riley nodded her head.

"Good news is your lips are a beautiful shade of magenta." Maya clapped her hands with a small smile, but Riley still didn't see what was so bad about it. "Bad news is I colored outside the line of your lip and when I tried to take it off, it wouldn't come off."

"Wait, what?!" Riley turned around and noticed the streak on her upper lip, her grabbing a napkin and trying her hardest to take off the makeup. However, it was no use. The makeup was stuck on Riley's face no matter how hard she tried. "How on earth am I supposed to go to class like this?"

"Hold on, maybe I can fix it." Maya grabbed a tissue and started soaking it in water, dabbing the tissue all over Riley's face in the process. Maya stopped rubbing on Riley's face but instead the stain had gotten worse, and it caused Maya to clear her throat and shake her head. "Well, do you want to hear the bad news because I think you're going to freak?"

"Please don't tell me the lip stain line got more on my face?" Riley motioned towards her face in a panicked matter.

"Riley?" Maya asked, with Riley giving her friend a glimmer of hope.

"Yes?" Riley gave a small smile, but Maya's face was still serious.

"The lip stain line got more on your face." Maya revealed, but Riley covered her mouth with her hand, looking towards the mirror and letting out a groan.

"Go get Farkle!" Riley ordered, Maya turning around and leaving the bathroom in order to find Farkle to fix this mess. As Maya looked around the school, she noticed Farkle and Lucas talking by Farkle's locker, which caused her to abruptly walk towards them and give Lucas a roll of her eyes.

"Sorry Ranger Rick, I need to borrow Farkle." Maya started pulling Farkle away but Lucas had to wonder what had everyone in such a panicked state.

"Wait, where are you going with Farkle?" Lucas questioned before noticing there was someone very important missing. "And where's Riley? I thought she said she was coming to school today."

"Um...Riley _can't_ come to school today." Maya lied, causing Lucas to give her a muddled look. "She moved...to _Canada_."

"Riley moved to Canada?" Lucas couldn't believe what was coming out Maya's mouth but Maya shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly.

"Yeah, she said they have better healthcare coverage there so...she's going to school in Canada for the rest of the semester. Maybe forever. Now if you'll excuse me..." Maya gave a light chuckle before pulling Farkle with her towards the bathroom.

"Maya! What are you doing?!" Farkle yelled, Maya glaring at Farkle in return. "If you keep pulling on my arms they're going to be abnormally long!"

"Well you got bigger problems." Maya pulled Farkle into the girls bathroom where they saw Riley standing there, her face smeared with Farkle's makeup. "Oh my gosh, Riley what did you do?"

"I tried to put on more makeup so it wouldn't look so bad and I think it smeared all over my face." Riley whined. "I look like a clown."

"Fix this Farkle." Maya ordered with Farkle putting his hand up and glancing at Riley.

"I guess I should have tested it first before I gave it to Riley." Farkle admitted.

"Gee, you think?" Maya sardonically asked, but Farkle seemed pretty bummed out.

"Well, there's good news and bad news." Farkle declared.

"Tell me the good news." Riley begged with Farkle giving her a reassuring smile.

"Good news is I can come up with a makeup removal spray." Farkle explained.

"Oh, that's great." Riley let out a relieved sigh, but Maya realized there was more to what Farkle was trying to tell Riley.

"Wait a minute..." Maya put her hand up. "What's the _bad_ news?" Farkle stared at Riley before shrugging his shoulders, Riley's relief suddenly vanishing.

"It's gonna take me at least a week to make it." Farkle solemnly told Riley. Riley put her hand over her mouth before staring at herself in the mirror, realizing how much trouble she was in. How was she supposed to go to class, go to cheerleading practice or go home with this muck on her face? Topanga was going to know Riley broke a rule and was completely disobedient. Riley didn't want to say it out loud...but she was in _so_ much trouble.

* * *

 

_**END ACT 1** _

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

" _Get it off, get it off, get it off!_ " Riley exclaimed as she and Maya tried rubbing off the makeup that was on her face. Unfortunately the makeup was simply smudging all over, causing Maya to release a reluctant sigh while turning her head towards Farkle. "I can't believe this..." Riley shook her head and felt like crying. All she wanted was for Lucas to see how beautiful she was. Instead, Lucas was going to think that she was ugly, and he was really going to fall for that senior cheerleader simply because she had the prettier face.

"Yeah, it's not coming off, honey." Maya gave Riley a pat on her shoulder before glancing at her watch. "Darn it, we have class."

"Class?" Riley blurted out. "No, no, no, no. I...I can't go to class like this!"

"Wait, you're not going to go to class?" Farkle blurted out. "Who has ever heard of such a thing and until when?"

"Maya does it all the time and until this gunk comes off my face." Riley pointed to herself, going towards the bathroom stall and entering. She closed the door behind her which caused Maya and Farkle to stare at each other, Farkle giving Maya a softened look.

"She's really not coming." Farkle sighed. "How is that going to work out if her dad teaches history?"

"Maybe Mr. Matthews will never figure it out. I ditch history sometimes and he never notices." Maya sighed. "Riley, we have to go to class. We'll bring you some lunch so you don't starve, okay?"

"Maybe it's best you let me starve." Riley said from behind the bathroom stall.

"Why?" Farkle and Maya asked in unison.

"Because once my mom sees me, I'm going to _be_ dead." Riley declared, Farkle and Maya hesitantly going towards the door of the bathroom and leaving. Once Farkle and Maya came out, Farkle noticed there were girls glancing at him...and they were giggling.

"Ladies...how goes it?" Farkle tried to flirt, the girls laughing and walking towards their first class of the day. Farkle realized the girls were laughing _at_ him which caused Maya to cross her arms and raise an eyebrow.

"Gee Farkle, you really don't want to fit in around here, do you?" Maya sighed, her walking towards her first class of the day as Farkle began to follow her. Maybe Riley was going to be fine. Maybe Riley would figure out a way to get out of this mess on her own. Or maybe Riley was sitting behind a bathroom stall, crying because of the terrible mess she was in.

* * *

Lucas felt there was something off when he sat in history class that morning and noticed Riley wasn't there. Riley was always siting in the front row trying her hardest to prevent her dad from embarrassing her. She would even flash him a smile every now and again. Lucas didn't see Riley in English, he didn't see her in science, he didn't even see her in gym and that was when the two of them always spoke about how their morning was. Lucas was worried, Riley not missing class wasn't like her, and he figured something was terribly wrong. Maya and Farkle entered the history room as Lucas stared at the both of them, the two of them noticing a concerned glance about Lucas.

"Maya, Farkle? Have you two seen Riley today?" Lucas questioned, Maya and Farkle glancing at each other with nervousness. "She wasn't in any class I had and she and I basically have the same schedule."

"Nope." Farkle shook his head.

"Canada." Maya added, Farkle furrowing his eyebrows.

"Enough with the Canada." Farkle whispered into Maya's ear. Lucas wasn't buying it. If something was bothering Riley, she would be sure to tell him. So where was she so he could help her?

"I seriously doubt Riley went to Canada, Maya." Lucas gave them both a serious look. "Now seriously, where's Riley?"

"Maybe she's dressed in a red and white striped shirt wearing glasses behind you." Maya gave a hypothetical thought, but it caused Lucas to turn around and notice Riley wasn't there. Instead it was just some random kid that was always behind him but oddly never talked. Lucas got up from his seat and went to grab his backpack, starting to make his way out of the classroom with hopes of finding Riley.

"Wait, where are you going?" Farkle questioned, Lucas turning around and keeping a hold on his backpack.

"I'm gonna find Riley...even if I have to take a bus to Canada." Lucas left the classroom before Maya and Farkle went after him, the both of them pulling him into an empty classroom with a sigh.

"You don't want to find Riley." Farkle furrowed his eyebrows.

"Wait, why don't I want to find Riley?" Lucas crossed his arms, Maya and Farkle glancing at each other with worry. "What did the both of you do to her? Did you make her disappear?"

"Well, we didn't make her disappear," Farkle started to chuckle, but Maya hit Farkle in the ribs, causing Farkle to let out a pained 'Ow'. "I mean..."

"Okay, we can do this the easy way or the hard way..." Lucas started glaring at Farkle before Maya pushed Lucas back, Lucas appearing surprised that Maya had done something like that. "Maya, will someone just tell me what's going on?"

"All right Ranger Rick. If you must know, Riley tried to turn herself into a beautiful swan but instead she became the ugly duckling because of Farkle." Maya folded her hands, Farkle shifting his eyes back and forth.

"What did you do, Farkle?" Lucas wanted to know.

"RileywantedmakeupsoImadehersomemakeupanditgotstuckonherfacewhenshetriedtoapplyit. Pleasedonthateme..." Farkle spoke in a rushed tone. Lucas immediately understood what Farkle was trying to say, causing him to cross his arms and furrow his eyebrows.

"Wait, you gave Riley makeup and it got stuck to her face?" Lucas sounded surprised. "Why would you give Riley makeup? She doesn't need it."

"That's what I was telling Riley, and that's what everyone else was telling Riley." Maya shrugged her shoulders. "Those cheerleaders on the squad really got to her and I don't know what to do."

"Where is she now?" Lucas wanted to know, Maya and Farkle glancing at each other before heading towards the girls bathroom, motioning towards the door and Lucas staring at it. "I can't go in there."

"Why not?" Maya asked, Lucas appearing surprised.

"That's the girls bathroom." Lucas argued.

"You're right..." Maya nodded her head, walking around Lucas before she placed her hands on his back. "You don't want to go into the girls bathroom because your a guy and guys shouldn't be in the girls bathroom. I think it's admirable that you want to respect the laws of nature. _OPEN IT FARKLE!_ " Lucas appeared shocked when Farkle opened the bathroom door and Maya shoved Lucas in, causing him to turn around and notice Farkle slammed the door shut. Lucas turned around and saw Riley standing there, with her face full of Farkle's makeup, and Lucas giving her a softened look.

"Lucas?!" Riley blurted out, Lucas nodding his head.

"Hey." Lucas waved his hand while Riley went back towards the stall, her closing the door and Lucas following her. "Riley, will you please come out of there? We need to talk."

"I don't really want to talk right now." Riley's voice cracked as Lucas gave the stall a softened glance. "Look at me...I'm hideous."

"No, you're not." Lucas assured her. "Riley, why did you put all of that gunk on your face? Why did you feel the need to put all that on when you don't need it."

"Do you want to know why I wanted to put that stuff on my face?" Riley opened the stall, tears streaming down her face. "Do you want to know why I wanted to wear makeup and have everyone stare at me like I was someone important? I did it because I wanted to feel beautiful! I wanted to feel like those girls that walk down the hallway and have guys just stare at because they're beautiful. I want to be the girl that can get any guy she wants because of my looks and I want to be the one that everyone talks about. I want to feel beautiful, Lucas...and without make up I don't feel beautiful." Lucas stared at Riley before shaking his head, him pulling her close and giving her a hug.

"Riley, you don't have to wear makeup in order to impress any guy." Lucas said. "If a guy wants to be with you, then they should be with you for your heart. Not for the stuff that's on your face. I'm gonna be honest with you, I like girls who keep it simple and don't put all that stuff on."

"Really?" Riley stared at him while Lucas nodded his head.

"Really." Lucas agreed. "That senior cheerleader that tried to hit on me the other day, she was wearing way too much makeup and I would not have given her a chance. I'd rather have a girl that's real, pure, honest and good than a girl who only cares about looking like a supermodel."

"So what do you think of me?" Riley asked, Lucas putting a hand through her hair.

"I think that you're a real, good, honest and beautiful person Riley Matthews." Lucas answered. "And I think you don't need to wear any gunk on your face to try to impress anyone. You can impress anyone with just your smile." Riley stuffed her hands in her pockets before glancing away, Lucas taking his finger and placing it under her cheek, Riley's eyes once again meeting his. "You always impress me by just being you...and you don't need to do anything extra."

"Hearing that come from you it really makes me feel a whole lot better." Riley smiled, with Lucas slowly taking a step back. "But what am I gonna do now? Farkle said he can't come up with a makeup removal formula until next week."

"Well, there are two things you can do." Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "You can hide in the bathroom, skip school the rest of your life. Or you can go out there and take responsibility for your actions. It's up to you." Riley glanced at Lucas before nodding her head slowly, holding her hand out and Lucas slowly taking it.

"I can't do this alone." Riley said above a whisper. Lucas looked down at Riley's hand before squeezing it tightly, him slowly pulling Riley along with him.

"And you won't have to do this alone." Lucas promised her, Riley smiling and her and Lucas exiting the bathroom. Maya and Farkle stared at Lucas and Riley, the both of them giving Riley a smile. "Riley is going to go and get help, and I told her she won't go through this alone. She's not gonna go through this alone, right guys?" Maya and Farkle sent each other a smile before once again glancing at Riley, Farkle taking Riley's other hand and Maya taking Farkle's.

"She's not gonna go through this alone." Maya promised, the four of them heading towards the history classroom and noticing Cory was in the middle of teaching a lesson. Maya knocked on the door as the four of them ducked, Cory walking towards the door and opening it. He noticed the foursome waiting for him and Cory couldn't help but let out a gasp at Riley's face. "Mr. Matthews, I know that this is a long shot but we need your help." Cory stared at Riley before crossing his arms, Riley squeezing Lucas's hand with need for support.

"So this explains where you were all day." Cory raised an eyebrow. "I was told by Maya that you went to _Canada_. Seriously Maya, what's your obsession with Canada?" Maya stared at Cory before nonchalantly shrugging her shoulders.

"Well, Canada makes good maple syrup, bacon and _Degrassi_." Maya answered, Lucas, Riley and Farkle glancing at Maya with a muddled look. "Oh please, don't knock it till you try it."

"Dad, I made a mistake and I need help getting out of it." Riley said. "Please help me?" Cory stared at his daughter before once again raising an eyebrow, crossing his arms with a softened expression.

"Are you ever going to do this again? Wearing makeup even though your mother told you not to and skipping class?" Cory asked, Riley immediately shaking her head. "All right, I'll help. I want you to know...there's only one person who can really help. One person that knows how to get sharpie off someone's face with her voodoo magic."

"You don't mean..." Riley's eyes widened as Cory nodded his head.

"Yeah, that's exactly who I mean." Cory answered, Riley turning towards Lucas, Maya and Farkle. "You want help right?"

"Yeah." Riley turned back to her father, letting out a sigh. "I want help...and I also have to face the consequences of my actions." Cory gave a proud smile before patting his daughter's back, all of them going to get help for Riley's issue.

* * *

Topanga walked into the kitchen while on her day off, noticing that Auggie and Ava were busy watching another show that was Ava's personal favorite. Topanga knew she needed to find a way to get Ava and Auggie to do something Auggie liked, and that was when she had an idea. Topanga entered the living room and held what seemed to be Auggie's toy dinosaurs, knowing that they were his favorite and there was no way that Auggie would be able to stay away from them.

"Hey Ava! Hey Auggie!" Topanga smiled, Auggie and Ava looking over at Topanga with the toy dinosaurs in her hand. "Gee, I wonder what I have here."

"Mom, why do you have my dinosaurs?" Auggie asked, Topanga glancing at the dinosaur toys.

"Because you and Ava are going to play with them." Topanga grinned, handing the toys over to Auggie and Ava. Ava glanced at the toys with confusion before staring at Topanga, shrugging her shoulders and her face turning into anger.

"What do you want us to do this?" Ava huffed, Topanga once again smiling and sitting on the sofa with them.

"I want you to try something Auggie likes." Topanga answered, Ava crossing her arms. "Ava, if there's one thing I learned from being in a relationship, it's that you can't do the same things all the time, and only the things one person likes to do. We have to take the other person's interests into account, and at least try them. It means a lot to the other person when we show interest in things that we never tried, and you never know. You might enjoy it." Ava stared at the dinosaur for a moment before turning towards Auggie, Auggie staring at Ava with interest.

"Auggie? I think I know what we can do with these toys." Ava answered, Auggie smiling.

"Dress them in tutus?" Auggie asked, Topanga widening her eyes with concern.

"You are extremely smart August Matthews." Ava answered with Auggie getting up from his seat. Ava turned around and stuck her tongue out at Topanga, Topanga appearing offended by Ava's disrespect. "All right, let's go." Ava and Auggie went towards the bedroom with Topanga furrowing her eyebrows. The door opened to the apartment as Topanga stared at the doorway, seeing her husband was standing there with a meek look on his face.

"What happened?" Topanga immediately asked, Cory raising an eyebrow.

"How did you know?" Cory asked.

"I'm a lawyer, I immediately know when something is up." Topanga replied, Cory giving his meek smile. "So what's going on? I'm sure it can't be that bad."

"You wanna bet?" Cory asked, motioning for Riley to come in, but once Topanga saw Riley's face, she stared at Cory with an upset expression.

"What on earth happened to our daughter?!" Topanga stared at Cory with an angry expression but Riley shook her head, staring at her mother with a saddened look.

"Dad had nothing to do with this." Riley answered. "This was all me mom. I was the one that had disobeyed your rule and decided to wear makeup even when you said I shouldn't. I need your help, and after you help me I promise I will accept whatever punishment you give me like the young lady I am. Just please help me, mom." Topanga stared at Riley for a moment before she nodded her head, giving her daughter a small smile.

"All right, first we'll fix the problem." Topanga folded her hands as Riley smiled. " _Then_ punishment." Riley's smile immediately faded, but she knew this was coming. "Come on, I have just the trick to take that yucky stuff off." Topanga led Riley into her room as Riley sat down on the bed, Topanga getting out some of her makeup remover and sitting in front of her. "Just a few rubs of this, and you'll be as good as new. Riley, I don't understand. Why did you go behind my back and put on makeup even when I told you that you weren't ready?"

"I just wanted to feel beautiful. And I thought wearing makeup was the only way I was going to be able to impress a boy I liked." Riley honestly answered, Topanga taking a bit of her makeup remover and putting it on Riley's face.

"Honey, you don't have to wear makeup to impress someone." Topanga assured her, Riley glancing at her mother with interest. "Your father fell for me and I didn't think I needed makeup. Besides, you don't wear makeup or dress for someone else. You do it for you. I mean, that's the only real reason we do things, right? For ourselves?" Riley thought about what her mother meant, finally nodding her head and giving her mother a hug.

"I'm sorry." Riley said. "I made a big mess of things."

"You're growing up." Topanga told her, running a hand through Riley's hair. "It's a fact of life. Sometimes we're gonna make mistakes and we're gonna mess up. But that's the beauty of learning life lessons and growing. Here, I'll make you a deal. As soon as you turn 16, you can wear makeup if you choose. You don't have to, but you don't have to hide it from me if you decide you want to. Okay?"

"So 14 is just a little too young?" Riley wondered, Topanga nodding her head.

"Yes, 14 is just a little too young." Topanga answered. "But if there's a boy that likes you, they'll like you for your heart, not for your looks." Topanga smiled before she continued working on Riley's face, with Riley thinking about the words her mother told her. Maybe she didn't need to be like everyone else and wear makeup, maybe she was fine with just being Riley.

* * *

That evening Riley sat at her window while doing her homework, staring at her fresh face in the mirror and giving it a smile. She didn't need makeup, yet. She could just be herself. As Riley went back to her homework, she noticed there was someone knocking on the window, and as Riley turned, she noticed it was _Lucas_. Riley looked around to make sure her parents weren't coming, which caused her to open the window and let him in.

"Lucas, what are you doing here?" Riley wondered, Lucas glancing around.

"I thought maybe I would keep the prisoner company since she appears extremely bored." Lucas smiled, although Riley was going back to her schoolwork.

"Well, I hope you know I'm grounded for disobeying my mother's rules and for ditching class today, so we'll only be seeing each other during school hours." Riley couldn't help but give a chuckle, although Lucas sat down in front of the window.

"How long are you grounded for?" Lucas asked.

"Well, at first my mom thought 'four till college' would be an admirable punishment." Riley shrugged her shoulders. "But then we settled on a month of no T.V. and I have to come home right after cheerleading practice. So it wasn't that bad."

"A month is gonna fly by like that." Lucas snapped his fingers before Riley giggled. Riley played with her fingers for a few moments before she stared at him, Lucas noticing that her face was soft.

"Thank you for going to the bathroom and talking to me at school today." Riley said. "I don't think I ever would have gotten the courage to come out of that bathroom and ask for help if it wasn't for you."

"Sometimes people just need to give you a push." Lucas said, Riley nodding her head slowly. "I'm glad I was the one that was able to give you that push you needed."

"Yeah, well..., it helped a lot." Riley admitted. "I learned a lot today. I learned that I don't have to do what others do just to impress someone and I don't have to be afraid to face the consequences of my actions. Although I got the punishment I deserved, I'm glad I did the right thing."

"I'm just curious Riley." Lucas stared at her with Riley raising an eyebrow. "Who were you trying to impress that you went to Farkle to make you makeup?"

"This is gonna sound embarrassing." Riley got up from the window and walked over to her bed, but when she stared at Lucas, she knew that he was one of her best friends and she couldn't lie to him. "I was trying to impress _you_." Lucas raised an eyebrow and motioned for Riley to continue. "When those cheerleaders started dabbing on makeup and said that it was the only way you were going to be interested, I panicked...and that's why I went to Farkle and I used makeup that has never been tested before...and that's why I ended up looking like Loonette the Clown! I was just missing her doll Molly and the comfy couch that you can fit gigantic clocks in!" Lucas couldn't help but chuckle at the last part, getting up from the window and sitting down on the bed next to her.

"Riley, I hope you know that you don't need to impress me with makeup." Lucas said just above a whisper. "I don't know if you noticed but I said no to a date with the cheerleader because I didn't want to go out with her."

"You didn't?" Riley crossed her arms and stared at him with interest. "Why not?"

"Because she's not _you_." Lucas replied. "I mean, I stared at her and my eyes kept wandering to the little freshman cheerleader across the room, and when the cheerleader asked what I was looking at, I said I was looking at the cheerleader that doesn't have to try so hard to make friends and is already bubbly and happy. And that cheerleader happened to be my good friend Riley Matthews." Riley looked down at her hands as Lucas cleared his throat. "You don't need to do anything to impress me, Riley. Just being you is enough for me. I always have the greatest time when I'm with you and when we're together, it feels like nothing can ever tear us apart. And I kind of like that feeling."

"Me too." Riley grabbed his hand and squeezed it as Lucas stared at her softly. Riley noticed she was getting lost in his eyes, which caused her to lean up and place her forehead on his. Lucas had no idea what was happening and neither did Riley, but they weren't going to question it. Riley placed her hands on Lucas's cheeks and felt her lips gently brush against his, Lucas closing his eyes and kissing Riley back. They both had no idea what this meant, but Riley did like that she felt secure and safe in his arms. Lucas eventually parted his lips from Riley's and stared at her, noticing she was blushing and letting out a softened giggle.

"Wow..." Lucas simply said as Riley nodded her head. "That kiss was..."

"Yep." Riley added, Lucas looking down at his watch.

"Um, I better go." Lucas motioned towards the window as he started to walk towards it. "I told Farkle's mom I would help her make chili..although I am not eating it." Riley laughed as Lucas started going through the window, but not without giving Riley one last glance and even a soft smile. "Goodnight, Riley."

"Goodnight, Lucas." Riley answered back, Lucas leaving the house and going up the fire escape to Farkle's place. Riley held her pillow close to her as she smiled, but ultimately decided to get back to her homework. Little did Riley and Lucas know, Maya and Farkle were sitting on the top fire escape and heard their entire conversation (mostly because Lucas had left the window open).

"So if Riley and Lucas happen to get together, what's gonna happen to us?" Farkle asked as Maya stared at him, raising an eyebrow at his question.

"Nothing is going to happen between us." Maya motioned with her fingers at the both of them before glancing down below. "I mean, Riley and Lucas are...Riley and Lucas and you and I are just..." Maya looked at Farkle as he stared at her, the both of them giving each other a softened look. Farkle tried to be romantic, but he puckered his lips and went for a kiss, only for Maya to put his hand up and Farkle to kiss her hand. Maya stared at him after Farkle broke the kiss with her hand, Maya staring at Farkle's handy work and nodding her head. "Not bad, Farkle. Not bad at all. You know, you're gonna make someone very happy...simply because you don't kiss like a salamander." Farkle fist pumped as Maya stared at her hand, Farkle getting up from his chair and walking away. Maya glanced down at where Farkle's lips connected with her hand, not noticing that she was releasing a softened smile. _Oh, Farkle_. Maya thought to herself before getting up from the fire escape and climbing down so she could make the long walk home.

* * *

"I don't get it Cory." Topanga gripped onto the same pillow that Cory had earlier, staring at her husband with shock. "How is it possible that Auggie and Ava have no interest in doing things that Auggie likes? I mean, I tried the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs are Auggie's favorite thing in the entire world. How could he not want to play with the dinosaurs? Instead they dressed them up in tutus and made them have _tea!_ " Cory thought for a few moments while stroking his chin, him shaking his head and not understanding why his wife was in such a predicament.

"Well, honey...maybe what works for us doesn't work for Auggie and Ava. Maybe Auggie likes being with Ava because he knows doing everything she likes makes her happy...and why are we talking about them like they're dating? They're six!" Cory sat down on the sofa next to her and shook his head.

"Actually, Ava's seven." Topanga answered.

"Why is he with an older woman?" Cory asked before Topanga held up seven fingers.

"Because this many," Topanga said before she put up six fingers. "Gets to tell _this many_ what to do!"

"Gosh, you even sound like her." Cory shuddered with Topanga leaning her head on Cory's shoulder.

"The world nowadays is much different than when we were navigating it, right?" Topanga asked, Cory glancing at her and nodding his head.

"Yeah, it is much different." Cory wrapped an arm around Topanga's shoulder, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "I mean, our daughter wants to wear makeup and our son is chasing after older women. This is not our world anymore."

"Yeah, but maybe it wasn't meant to be." Topanga stared at her husband. "Maybe this is their world now and we have to figure out how we fit in their world. Kind of like I still figure out on a daily basis how I fit in your world with Shawn." Cory gave a cheesy smile at Shawn's name, which caused Topanga to giggle. "Oh, Cory. I'm not ready for our kids to grow up."

"Yeah, I'm not ready for that either." Cory admitted, rubbing Topanga's back. "But it's gonna happen, whether we like it or not. And we have to stand back and let them navigate their own world...at least until they ask for our help. Then we show them they're living in our world." Topanga laughed slightly while staying in Cory's arms,, the two of them smiling at one another.

"Yeah, but for now...they take on their world. And we'll be waiting when they get back..." Topanga said, closing her eyes and feeling relaxed.

"Yeah we will." Cory answered. He looked towards the kitchen and could have sworn he saw a familiar face, the face being none other than his old teacher, principal and professor... _George Feeny_.

"I could not have said it any better, Mr. Matthews. Well done." Mr. Feeny said, and once Cory looked away and turned around again, Mr. Feeny was gone. Yep, even though Mr. Feeny was in a whole different state..., he was still there making sure that Cory remembered that everyone's purpose in this life was to simply... _do_ good.


	4. 1x04: Girl Meets Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucas becomes upset when he takes an aptitude test and he feels he isn't destined for anything, which causes him to change his persona much to Riley's disdain. Riley reveals to Maya she kissed Lucas, which leaves her to wonder what her relationship with Lucas is. Topanga struggles to keep a secret when Shawn (Rider Strong) wants to throw a surprise party for Cory.

                                                                                

* * *

_**ACT 1  
** _

* * *

Maya stood in front of her locker that Monday morning as she held her text book close to her, looking at one sheet of paper and writing on another sheet of paper. Maya couldn't help but release a small smile as she continued jotting down her thoughts...or more accurately, copying Farkle's homework, but she sensed something was wrong when Riley entered school, looking around to make sure that she didn't see a specific person. Maya had to wonder what was bothering her friend, and that was when she decided to close her locker and walk over. She noticed that Riley was looking as if she was hiding something, but no one could get a secret past Maya Hart. She was just going to get it out of the person one way or another.

"Riley?" Maya simply questioned, but Riley put her hands in the air, Maya giving her friend a confused look.

"I haven't seen Lucas. If Lucas comes looking for me, tell him you haven't seen me! Tell him I went to New Orleans! New Orleans! Yeah, that's a good one..." Riley spoke in a rushed voice, which gave Maya the impression something was wrong.

"Okay, um...why would you want me to tell Lucas that you're in New Orleans?" Maya asked.

"Well for starters, they make really good gumbo there and it's where all the great food is." Riley gave her normal smile before she pursed her lips. "But if Lucas thinks I'm out of the state, then...he can't find me!"

"Riley, what is going on?" Maya asked. "What's going on with you and Lucas that you're so scared of?"

"I can't speak of it. I promised myself I wouldn't..." Riley spoke in a determined tone, but Maya simply held out her hand and showed Riley the ring on her finger.

"Friendship ring." Maya responded, Riley letting out a groan. She released a sigh before nodding her head, leaning against the locker and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Remember when I tried on makeup and I was in that terrible, terrible situation where it wouldn't come off and I looked like a clown?" Riley started to ask with Maya nodding her head in response. "Well...Lucas and I were talking in my bedroom afterwards and...he kissed me." Maya's eyes widened while Riley covered her eyes with her hands, Maya shaking her head and letting out a chuckle.

"You...you kissed Ranger Rick?" Maya was amused, but Riley was mostly embarrassed. "Wow...what was it like?"

"His lips felt like soft velvety pillows, like the ones that you find at _Ikea_. They're also the type of pillows you try to smuggle out of the store under your shirt with hopes no one notices you." Riley responded. "It's just ever since then, I've felt incredibly confused about my feelings for him."

"All right, I'll help you here..." Maya said before walking over towards Riley. "You can't date him."

"I can't?" Riley pondered. "Why not?"

"Because...you're still young and Lucas is still young and...you two dating would only break apart the friendship circle we have. If you and Lucas dated and then broke off your relationship, things would get extremely awkward." Maya told her. "You both aren't emotionally ready for the consequences of a relationship. And yes, the kiss was nice...but something tells me you were only kissing him because he listened to your problems."

"He told me I was beautiful though..." Riley said above a whisper, Maya placing a hand on Riley's shoulder.

"And you are beautiful, Riley." Maya answered. "Lucas wasn't wrong about that. But Lucas was only telling you that as his friend. I don't think he's expecting a relationship out of the words he tells you."

"Farkle's our friend and he never calls anyone beautiful...except for his science projects." Riley brought that up as Maya nodded her head.

"Farkle is...well...he's _Farkle_." That was the only answer Maya could come up with before she became serious again. "Riley, I'm telling you this as your best friend in the entire world...I think you and Lucas should just stay friends. You don't want to venture someplace where you both could eventually get hurt." Riley knew better than to disagree with Maya, so she simply nodded her head and put an arm around Maya's shoulder.

"You're right." Riley cleared her throat. "It was just a kiss and it's better Lucas and I stay friends..." Maya patted Riley on the shoulder and the two of them made it to their history class, where Riley noticed Lucas was looking up from his book to glance at her. The two of them felt their cheeks turn red, while Riley took her seat in the front of the classroom, but Maya clasped her hands together while slowly walking in Lucas's direction.

"Good morning, Maya." Lucas gave a polite smile, but when Maya gave a devilish grin, Lucas's face turned serious. "Oh no..."

"I _could_ just say 'Good Morning, Lucas! Today is such a _wonderful_ day!' But I think I have a _better_ idea..." Maya cleared her throat as Lucas sat in his chair, glancing at Riley who was staring over at Maya with interest. Maya got into Lucas's face, him gripping onto the desk and his eyes widening. After a moment of silence, Maya and Lucas's foreheads were touching and Maya gave a haughty smirk. " _HURR HURR, THERE!_ " Lucas cringed as Maya finally got out of his face, going into her seat and sitting down.

"If I wasn't awake before, I'm _really_ awake now." Lucas shivered as Farkle and Cory entered the room, Farkle glancing at the board and seeing the words 'Career Aptitude Test'. Farkle's eyes widened and he went to his chair, immediately raising his hand as Cory put his binder down. Cory questioned whether he should encourage Farkle's odd behavior over the words on the board, but then he figured Farkle was just being... _Farkle_.

"Mr. Matthews! Mr. Matthews! Mr. Matthews!" Farkle kept raising his hand while Cory nodded his head and pointed at him.

"Yes, Mr. Minkus, Mr. Minkus, Mr, Minkus." Cory said, Farkle getting out of his chair and pointing to the board.

"I must be dreaming but i think there's something on the board that says 'Career Aptitude Test'." Farkle let out a nervous chuckle as Cory looked back at the board.

"It _does_ say Career Aptitude Test?" Cory said, with Farkle immediately hugging himself as a coping mechanism. "That's right, today you're all going to take a career aptitude test."

"How are we supposed to take a test that we haven't studied for?!" Farkle panicked. "It's unethical, it's unheard of! It's insane, Matthews! Insane!" Farkle went over to Cory and grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him closer as Cory motioned for Farkle to take his seat. "Okay." Farkle walked over to his chair and sat behind Riley, everyone glancing at Cory with interest.

"Can anyone actually explain to me what a Career Aptitude test is?" Cory asked. Lucas raised his hand as Cory nodded his head, pointing to Lucas with hope he'd give an answer.

"It's a test that tells us what jobs we're most suited for in the real world." Lucas answered, Cory nodding his head at him.

"That's right, and today we're going to take a test to see what career you'd be destined for." Cory went to grab papers and placed one on each desk, but Farkle still seemed a little out of it. "Farkle...don't worry...this won't count for your grade."

"I still think you should be able to study for a test..." Farkle muttered as he grabbed the sheet of paper and started writing on it. Riley took one look at Lucas before staring down at her sheet of paper, writing her answers and trying to get rid of the idea of where her relationship with Lucas actually stood.

* * *

                                                                  

* * *

Topanga sat at the kitchen table that afternoon as she glanced at case files from her job. Being a lawyer was challenging, but it was also rewarding for her. She was able to make a difference in the community, and there was nothing that made her life more fulfilling. Well...there was being Riley and Auggie's mother, as well as Cory's wife when Cory wasn't busy being 'married' to his best friend Shawn Hunter. She heard a knock on the door which caused her to look up from her papers. She put them down as she went to get the door, her eyes widening when she noticed Shawn was on the other side. Topanga crossed her arms with an amused smirk, while Shawn continued to stare back at her.

"Topanga!' Shawn held his arms out, Topanga eventually relenting and hugging him.

"Shawn, how's it going?" Topanga chuckled, letting him in the house as Shawn made his way to the kitchen, opening the fridge and getting stuff to make a sandwich. "Come on in. Make yourself at home...and make yourself a sandwich." Topanga sardonically added.

"Sorry, but when I'm nervous, I'm usually hungry." Shawn explained, taking a bite out of the sandwich.

"Okay, what exactly are you nervous about?" Topanga wondered, Shawn looking around the house to make sure that no one was going to enter. "Shawn is everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's just that...I got Cory a surprise." Shawn whispered dramatically, Topanga leaning closer to him with interest.

"You got your _luvah_ a surprise?" Topanga jested, Shawn putting his hand up.

"Hey, hey, hey. Cory is not my _luvah_." Shawn mocked Topanga's tone with the last part of his sentence before his face became curious. "I just have a close-knit bond with the guy, that's all. And sometimes I picture what a T.V. show would be like starring Cory and me where no one talked but us." Shawn stared out into space for a moment as he thought about what a T.V. show of him and Cory would be like, before his eyes went back to Topanga and he remembered what he was here for. "But honestly, I got him a surprise because I wasn't around for his birthday last month. I'm going to plan Cory a surprise party, and I think he's going to love it. I just need you to do me a favor and not tell Cory about it."

"Oh boy..." Topanga cleared her throat, going towards the couch. "Shawn, that's going to be really hard for me. I don't think I've lied to Cory about anything since we got married. Well, there was the one time where I told him I liked his tie when in reality I think it's the ugliest thing in the world. In fact, I think I told that lie this morning." It was Topanga's turn to stare into space before shaking her head, glancing back at Shawn who was giving her an amused look. "But the point is, I can't lie to Cory."

"Topanga, Topanga Topanga...I can tell you from experience that what you're doing is not lying." Shawn scoffed. "It's called keeping a secret."

"It's lying!" Topanga pointed a finger while hissing at him. "It's lying and it's against everything I stand for! I'm a lawyer for crying out loud."

"Lawyers lie. All the time in court." Shawn said, Topanga releasing a sigh. "Topanga, I just need you to keep it a secret until Saturday. That's all I ask." Topanaga seemed unsure before she cleared her throat.

"Until Saturday?" Topanga wondered, Shawn nodding his head. "All right...I think I can do that..."

"Thank you." Shawn sounded relieved. "I really owe you won."

"Well...anything for your _luvah_!" Topanga teased again before going back to her folder. She thought for a few minutes as her eyes widened, her glancing over at Shawn again and giving him a meek smile. Topanga had a hard time keeping anything from Cory, so this was gonna be a tough week for her. "Are you sure he's going to not notice my squirrely attitude? I mean, nothing gets by him." As if on cue, Cory entered the house and walked past Shawn, heading towards Topanga with a worried expression on his face.

"Topanga, you told me my tie was awesome this morning. Instead I was laughed at by the school crossing guard, the principal...and Farkle when he finally finished freaking out over a test he couldn't study for." Cory said, Shawn giving Topanga a smirk while crossing his arms.

"Yeah, you're right Topanga. _Nothing_ gets by him." Shawn teased, but Cory turned around and hushed his best friend, still oblivious to the fact Shawn was there.

"Shawn, I'm having an important conversation with my wife about a tie here." Cory said before turning back to Topanga, noticing she was raising an eyebrow towards him. After a few moments he used his thumb to point behind him, Topanga giving her husband a smile. "Topanga? Shawn's right behind me, isn't he?"

"Yes, Cory. Yes he is. Go...go to your _luvah_..." Topanga couldn't help but laugh at the end of her sentence before heading back to do some work. Cory turned around and widened his arms, Shawn giving his best friend a smile.

"Shawny!" Cory exclaimed, going into Shawn's arms.

"Cory!" Shawn reciprocated, Topanga shaking her head and looking back at her folder. she didn't know how she came second to Shawn, but she got used to it. Cory and Shawn were always going to have a tight knit friendship, and maybe the fact Cory and Shawn had each other this week would help Topanga keep the surprise party a surprise. She just hoped she didn't blow it.

* * *

The next morning, Riley walked into the history classroom as she held her books close to her, jotting some things down from her math class and remembering that she had a science project due the next week. She also had to remember that the homecoming dance was at the end of the semester and she signed herself up to help with decorations. For a freshman in High School, Riley was really embracing being apart of the school community and she felt like she found her place in the world. As soon as she looked up from her sheet of paper, she noticed Lucas sitting in his chair, and Riley noticed they were the only two people in the classroom.

"Well..." Riley sheepishly said, with Lucas staring back at her. "This...isn't awkward at all." The problem was it _was_ awkward...and Riley was sure that she should take Maya's advice and not risk jeopardizing her and Lucas's friendship. "Hi...Lucas."

"Hello, Riley." Lucas smiled, but Riley figured Lucas was trying to pretend the kiss between them never happened. "How are you today?"

"How are you doing that?" Riley wondered, her walking towards his desk and sitting in the seat across from him. "How are you just pretending that everything is normal when it's not? It's not normal, I tell you. It's just not!" Lucas innocently blinked at Riley before leaning back in his chair, wondering what exactly he should tell her.

"Everything is normal, Riley." Lucas said. "I mean, why would there be a reason that nothing is normal?"

"Because we kissed, remember?" Riley asked, Lucas furrowing his eyebrows. "It was kind of a heat of the moment thing and we just kissed. And now I'm conflicted and I don't know what to do."

"What do you mean you're conflicted?" Lucas asked, Riley running a hand through her hair. "It was a kiss between two people who like each other. What's so conflicting about a kiss between two people that like each other?"

"I don't know, I..." Riley didn't get a chance to finish her sentence when Farkle and Maya entered the room, Riley leaning back in her chair and letting out a sigh. "Don't think this conversation isn't over."

"I wouldn't have dreamed it any other way." Lucas gave a smile as Maya walked towards Lucas's desk, ruffling his hair and going to her desk. "Maya...do you know how long it takes for me to do my hair?"

"Were you going for the Justin Bieber look because you're like ten years from that actually happening." Maya teased, but she noticed Riley was sitting next to Lucas, placing her hands on her hips. "Okay, what are you doing sitting there? You're supposed to be up here...with me. Not with Ranger Rick, okay?" Riley nodded her head and went to her original seat, Lucas staring at Maya sadly. He wanted Riley to sit with him so they could talk about the kiss, but none of that talk was going to happen once Cory came into the room.

"Ladies and gentlemen..." Cory held the stack of papers before placing it on his desk. "Let's start this class off with a question. What job do you see yourself having in ten years?"

"Bunny farmer." Riley blurted out.

"Dictator." Farkle added.

"Engineer." Lucas raised his hand after Farkle's response.

"Making bumpers in prison after I egg your car following graduation?" Maya smirked before she cleared her throat at Cory's unamused face expression. "The answers were supposed to be serious?"

"Yes...yes they were." Cory slapped his hand on his forehead before his gaze went to his daughter. "And being a bunny farmer isn't a real job, honey."

"Then don't go in my room." Riley's eyes widened, Cory ignoring that for a moment and writing the jobs everyone listed on the board.

"Yesterday, I asked you all to take career aptitude tests, so you can see where you find yourselves in ten years. Today, I have the results." Cory gave half of the papers to Maya and the other half to Riley, instructing them to hand out the test results. "After you get your results, share it amongst your friends. The answers may surprise you." As soon as Riley and Maya handed out the test results, the two of them went to their seats and stared at what their careers would be according to the test. Maya raised an eyebrow while Farkle furrowed his, but Riley seemed rather pleased with her results.

"Veterinarian. I'm going to care for lots of baby bunnies!" Riley giggled, Maya staring over at her with a smile.

"Yeah, you were always a bubbly little nugget, weren't you?" Maya asked, staring at her sheet of paper again. "I'm supposed to be a...a world leader."

"A world leader?" Farkle sounded outraged, but Riley had to wonder why Farkle sounded upset. "That's preposterous!"

"What did you get?" Maya asked.

"A scientist." Farkle seethed, but Maya didn't see the issue with Farkle's answer. "I wanted to rule the world, and I can't rule the world if I'm stuck in the lab all day!"

"I didn't ask to be a world leader." Maya responded, but she stared over at Lucas, seeing he was extremely quiet. "What did you get Ranger Rick? You're the only one who didn't share." Lucas stared at his friends before running a hand through his hair, Riley immediately becoming concerned.

"Um, Mr. Matthews?" Lucas asked, completely ignoring Maya's question. "Can I be excused for a moment?" Cory didn't know what was wrong with Lucas, but he nodded his head, motioning towards the door and Lucas getting out of his seat in a hurry. He left the classroom while Maya stared at the test results in front of her, prompting her to grab it and stare at what Lucas had got on his test.

"Maya, what are you doing?" Riley questioned. "Lucas, obviously was upset with his career..., and you're not letting him tell you like a real friend would."

"Riley..." Maya's face became serious, with her, Farkle and now Riley becoming curious. "There's no career here on Lucas's sheet of paper. The result was _N/A, not applicable._ "

"And what's _that_ supposed to mean?" Riley wondered.

"It means Lucas pretty much isn't destined for anything." Maya answered, with Riley feeling saddened. Riley had never seen Lucas so bummed out about anything...and this was the first time she had really seen Lucas in a vulnerable state. She wondered if everything was going to be okay with him, and she was determined to find out.

"Daddy?" Riley raised her hand, Cory staring at her with interest. "May I be excused?"

"Where _you_ going?" Cory couldn't help but ask, Riley standing up from her seat.

"I know what's bothering Lucas." Riley answered. "May I?" Cory hesitated for a moment before nodding his head, Riley going past him and heading towards the atrium where she saw Lucas sitting on the stairs with an upset expression on his face. "Lucas?" Lucas looked up and saw Riley staring back at him, but he wasn't interested in being told that he wasn't good enough. Instead, he got up from the stairs and started walking up them, away from Riley.

"Riley, I don't really feel like talking right now." Lucas huffed, him letting his anger get the best of him with him eventually kicking the wall next to the stairs. He took a couple of deep breaths, but it was evident that there were tears in his eyes. That test basically told him he was a nobody...and he wasn't ever going to find a career that was right for him.

"Lucas...you know that test isn't accurate." Riley tried to reason, walking up the stairs and seeing he was sitting down, rubbing his temples and glancing away from her. "You can't take what that test says to heart."

"I can't take the test to heart, you say? Let me ask you something; what did _you_ get on that test?" Lucas questioned, but his voice was gruff. Riley was taken aback by his question for a moment before taking a deep breath.

"It told me I was going to be a veterinarian...and Farkle was going to be a scientist...and Maya was going to be a world leader." Riley said, but Lucas sniffled, keeping his eyes away from Riley and putting his hand on his forehead.

"See? If that test told said Maya was going to be a world leader and that Farkle was going to be a scientist and that you were going to be a vet...then what I got must be true..." Lucas got up from the stairs, as Riley gave him a saddened look. "Riley...let's face it...I'm not good enough. I'm not good enough for this school...I'm not good enough for myself...and I'm not good enough for _you_." Riley innocently blinked at the last part before Lucas started walking away, Riley turning around and noticing he was out of her sight.

"Lucas!" Riley started to go after him, but then just stopped. She figured Lucas wasn't going to listen to her right now, especially since he was vulnerable right now. All she could do was make her trudge back to the classroom, and tell Maya and Farkle everything Lucas had told her.

* * *

"Wait, so let me get this straight." Maya said as she, Farkle and Riley sat by the bay window that afternoon in Riley's room. Riley had told them everything Lucas said to her after their conversation in the hallway, and Riley knew she needed her trusted best friends to be with her during this trying situation. "Lucas thinks he's not good enough for anyone or anything because of that career test? That's stupid. He's one of the smartest guys I know. Why would he take what a stupid test says to heart?"

"Maybe he's taking it to heart because it's what someone told him?" Farkle suggested. "When someone tells you something about you, even if it isn't true, you start believing it, because it's how you think the world perceives you."

"But I don't see him that way." Riley shook her head. "And neither do you guys. He's kind and compassionate and sweet...and we need to figure out a way to get through Lucas that he is special and he's worth anyone's time."

"Even yours?" Farkle wondered, Riley staring at Farkle while her cheeks turned red. "He likes you, you like him. It's not a secret."

"We're not talking about me and Lucas." Riley said. "We're talking about how he thinks the test he took was right. It's only going to be right if he lets it...and he needs to see the truth about himself." As if on cue, Topanga entered the room to spot the three friends sitting by the bay window, but they couldn't help but notice that Topanga looked extremely fidgety.

"Truth? What truth? I'm telling the truth! There's lots of truth in this house because Cory knows everything that goes on! What could he not know the truth about/" Topanga let out a nervous chuckle before walking out of the room, Maya and Farkle giving Riley a muddled look.

"Uncle Shawn is throwing my dad a late surprise birthday party and I'm guessing my mom has to keep it from him." Riley answered, Farkle and Maya nodding their heads in understanding. "The point is, Lucas is a wonderful person..., and we need to tell him that. Tomorrow at school, we're going to make it a point to let Lucas know that we're his friends and we're going to stick by him no matter what that stupid test says."

"Great idea." Farkle agreed, although Maya still appeared confused.

"What kind of cake is going to be at that party?" Maya questioned, Riley putting a hand on Maya's shoulder and giving her a smile.

"I was told there might be chocolate." Riley saw Maya's face light up, pointing a finger at Riley with excitement.

"I do _love_ chocolate." Maya admitted, with Farkle agreeing to the same thing. Riley knew that Lucas was going to be his loveable self in the morning, because he had friends that believed in him no matter what. She just hoped _he_ knew that.

* * *

The next morning, Riley, Maya and Farkle got to school early, just so they could catch Lucas and give him an intervention. They weren't going to let their friend mope around and believe in a sheet of paper. Not on their watch.

"Okay, so does everyone know what they have to do?" Riley questioned, Maya and Farkle nodding their heads in unison. "We grab Lucas, bring him to the history room and tell him that he's destined for great things."

"And if that doesn't work, can we go get some chocolate cake?" Maya asked, Farkle and Riley giving her a perplexed look. "What? Interventions make me hangry...it means hungry and angry at the same time..." Riley and Farkle heard the doors to the school open, with Riley's eyes locking with Farkle.

"Is that Lucas behind us?" Riley wondered, but as Farkle eyed the person behind them, his face softened and even turned dejected. "Farkle?"

"You might want to turn around to see this..." Farkle said, Riley and Maya turning around and noticing Lucas was wearing a black leather jacket with a skull t-shirt underneath. What happened to Lucas over night? It was as if he was a new person...

"Riley?" Maya whispered, with Riley staring over at Maya for a split second.

"Yes, Maya?" Riley responded.

"What the what happened to 'Lucas The Good'?" Maya questioned, although Riley wasn't sure of that answer. She wished she knew what happened to him.

"I'm not exactly sure..." Riley walked over to Lucas as he stared at her, but he wasn't smiling. Instead, his face was firm and he was taking out a stick of cinnamon gum. Riley's eyes bulged open as she stared at the 'No Gum' sign above Lucas's head. Lucas was going to break a school rule? "Lucas...you're not supposed to be chewing gum in the atrium. You can get caught and sent to detention for that." Instead of listening to Riley, Lucas unwrapped the gum and popped it in his mouth, Riley turning towards Maya and Farkle and pointing towards their friend.

"He's eating gum in the atrium!" Riley dramatically whispered to them. "He's being a very bad boy!"

"That's right...I changed myself and I kind of like it..." Lucas said, but he didn't sound like Lucas. Instead, he sounded like he had an Italian accent.

"All right. Lucas...what's with the clothes change?" Farkle couldn't help but wonder.

"And why do you sound like you're from a knockoff of _The Real Housewives of New Jersey_?" Maya added. Lucas gave them a glare before his eyes went to Riley, keeping the same emotionless expression he gave Maya and Farkle.

"Because this is who I am now. The old Lucas is gone...and the new Lucas is here to stay" Lucas declared, moving Riley to the side before heading to the bathroom. "Now if you'll excuse me...bad boy Lucas is gonna cut class...and there's nothing you guys can do about it." Lucas walked away as Riley stood there brokenhearted. This wasn't the Lucas she liked...if anything, she wasn't liking this Lucas at all. Farkle walked over and put an arm around Riley's shoulder, Riley leaning her head on Farkle's shoulder and trying her hardest not to cry. Maya glanced towards the bathroom before staring at her friends, using her thumb to point in the direction Lucas previously went to.

"Am I the only one that sort of likes 'Bad Boy Lucas'?" Maya questioned while getting a stern look from Farkle. "Yeah, I'm the only...okay." Maya sheepishly looked away as Farkle looked down at Riley, with Riley sadly staring out into the atrium and wondering why Lucas had changed so much. This wasn't the Lucas that Riley fell in love with. This wasn't Lucas at all.

* * *

_**END ACT 1  
** _

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

Maya, Riley and Farkle weren't sure what they were going to do about the situation with Lucas, and they realized they needed to think of a new plan. That was why they spent time in the cafeteria, hoping that getting lunch would cause them to think clearer, but Maya noticed that Riley was busy stabbing her potatoes with a fork. Farkle and Maya shared a worried glance before glancing at Riley, noticing she wasn't in the mood for talking. She didn't know this new Lucas...and she knew he was acting that way because he felt he was destined for failure. Maya became perplexed when Riley continued stabbing her potatoes, causing her to let out a hollow chuckle.

"Riley, that potatoes family is going to find out that you abused it's relative and come after you." Maya teased. "You wouldn't want that, now would you?"

"You sound concerned...about potatoes..." Riley stared at Maya before her eyes darted back towards the potatoes. "That sounds like something Lucas would have said..."

"Lucas was good at being concerned about others. Even if they were inanimate objects" Farkle agreed, Maya staring at her friends. "I just want to know why he had to resort to changing himself. He's a great guy and he doesn't need a sheet of paper to tell him what career he's going to have. For all we know that test could be a crock."

"Exactly." Maya pointed to Farkle as if he had a point, but Farkle glared at Maya as soon as she spoke.

"Oh don't go agreeing with me, Miss World Leader!" Farkle dramatically stated, Maya placing her hands up slightly. "You took the job I always wanted."

"Do you want to be a world leader, Farkle?" Maya asked, Farkle immediately nodding his head. "Then don't let that test define you..., go and be a world leader. If anyone is going to lead a country, it's going to be you."

"Do I get to be a dictator and tell everyone how they're supposed to feel?" Farkle pondered, but Maya rubbed her temples, deciding to change the subject.

"Riley, we're going to change Lucas back." Maya stated, but she noticed that Lucas was across the cafeteria, staring at ninth graders who were walking past him. Lucas walked over to the kid that seemed younger than him, straightening his jacket in order to intimidate the kid.

"Hey, baboon!" Lucas shouted, the kid trembling in his boots. "Yeah, that's right. I got you right where I want you. Give me your lunch money."

"But it's mine..." The kid answered, only for Lucas to grab the kid by his sweater and pull him close.

"I don't think you understood me." Lucas snarled. "I want your lunch money and I want it now. Now cough it up before I hang you by your underwear up the flag pole." Maya shook her head as she got out of her chair, walking over to Lucas and snapping her fingers.

"Hey, let go of him." Maya instructed, Lucas staring at Maya and letting out a scoff.

"Make me." Lucas tested her, which Maya quickly took as a challenge. Maya grabbed the kid away from Lucas and motioned for him to go, the kid immediately doing as Maya said before she turned back to Lucas. "Why on earth did you do that? You ruined my chance of getting that kid's lunch money!"

"Lucas, this isn't you." Maya pleaded with him. "You are a much better person than this. I know this is about your aptitude test and I know you're hurt about the results, but you can't do what you're doing to a random kid. Think of all the people you're hurting."

"Oh yeah? Who am I hurting?" Lucas crossed his arms, Maya glancing at Riley and Farkle before her eyes landed on Lucas.

"You're hurting Farkle, you're hurting me...and you're hurting Riley." Maya stuffed her hands in her pockets. "Riley is your biggest fan and she always supported you...but she can't support you doing this to a bunch of kids. It's not right, Lucas...and you know it. And my goodness...I love that leather jacket. Is it real leather?"

"80% but we won't tell the chess club. 100% leather intimidates them." Lucas responded, placing an arm around Maya. "Maya, you're a bad girl and I'm a bad boy...how about you and I combine our smarts and rule the school together...my _queen_?"

"Queen? Well, I..." Maya's voice almost sounded touched, but she snapped out of it, her shaking her head at Lucas's offer. "No. I'm better than belittling geeks and chess nerds. And so are you. You are worth more than you know..., please don't do this Lucas...please come back. I need you, Farkle needs you...Riley needs you. If you love Riley like you say you do, you would change back to your normal self for her, because she doesn't love this Lucas. She loves the Lucas you used to be..." Lucas considered Maya's words before shrugging his shoulders and glaring at her.

"No. I'm going to stay the way I am. Cause this is Lucas Friar now, the one you knew since seventh grade is gone. And since you ruined me getting free money from that kid, give me _your_ lunch money." Maya scoffed before going into her pockets, handing Lucas a $10 bill.

"There, you have my lunch money." Maya sighed. "How does it feel to take advantage of the people who care about you, Lucas?" Maya turned around and made her way back to Farkle and Riley, but Lucas scoffed and walked away from her. As soon as Maya made her way back to the table, she sat down, Riley staring at Maya with a saddened look.

"Maya?" Riley wondered, Maya looking up at Riley's voice.

"Yes, Riles?" Maya questioned.

"I don't think I like Lucas very much anymore..." Riley said above a whisper, getting up and walking as far as she could from her friends. Maya and Farkle noticed Riley leaving the lunch room which caused the both of them to stare at each other.

"I want to be mad at Lucas for taking my lunch money but _man_ that leather jacket has my heart racing..." Maya sighed. "Does it hurt to say that bad boy Lucas is cute?" Farkle immediately got the hint that Maya was a fan of bad boys, causing him to puff up his chest and wiggle his eyebrows.

" _Donnie Barnes, regular guy_." Farkle smirked, Maya glancing at him while shaking her head.

"No, it's not working..." Maya finally said, Farkle rubbing his temples together.

"I tried...but the situation with isn't good." Farkle said, Maya folding her hands as she thought. "What are we going to do?"

"I think I have an idea on how to get Lucas back..." Maya said. "And I mean the real Lucas."

"You trying to talk sense into him didn't help matters before." Farkle explained. "Instead, he just took your lunch money."

"I know that." Maya got up from her seat and started making her way out of the cafeteria. "Which is why I'm not the one that's going to talk sense into him." Maya left the cafeteria as Farkle stared at the food trays that were there, his eyes darting back to where Maya was and his fingers pointing to all the trays.

"I hope no one expects me to clean all this up!" Farkle declared, glancing at Riley's tray and seeing the glob of mashed potatoes there. "My goodness, what did Riley do to you?" Farkle questioned before he grabbed his fork and placed it in Riley's potatoes, bringing them to his mouth and a smile appearing on his face. There was nothing better than eating his friends leftover food, and at least for five minutes, all was right in Farkle's world.

* * *

Cory entered the house that afternoon as he noticed Shawn was sitting on the couch with a photo album, Cory wondering what his friend was doing looking down memory lane. Cory threw his keys into the pot that was nearby, walking over to Shawn and taking a seat next to him.

"Shawn, what are you doing?" Cory asked, Shawn staring over and shrugging his shoulders.

"I don't know, I found this photo album in your bookshelf and I decided to look back at some of the craziest times in our lives." Shawn said, opening it to a specific page before Shawn smiled slightly. "Hey remember when you were handcuffed to Topanga and she gave you your first kiss against the lockers?"

"Yeah, I remember that." Cory chuckled. "My voice was high and I looked like a poodle. No one ever forgets their first kiss. Do you remember yours?"

"You know, there were so many ladies I kissed, I don't know if I could keep track of them all. But I do know the one that meant the most to me in High School; Angela." Shawn honestly answered, Cory nodding his head at his friend and the two of them glancing back at the photo album. "Oh this was a good one..., remember when I stayed with Turner for a little while after my dad hit the road to find my mom?"

"Yep. You climbed out of our bay window wanting to be free like the dog that was barking outside." Cory recalled. "I remember he was pretty upset with you for bringing the cops to his house."

"Back then I didn't understand why he was so angry." Shawn admitted, Cory glancing at Shawn with interest. "But now that I'm older, I understand he did it because he cared. Hmm, boy do I miss Turner. I wonder where he is now.'

"Superintendent of John Quincy Adams Middle School." Cory answered, Shawn nodding his head at Cory and closing the book slowly. "Shawn, can I ask you question? I mean, it's been something that has been bothering me for years and...I noticed I never really asked you this. Um, do you regret the way that you grew up? You know with the whole...your mom not being there, your dad being in and out of your life...finding out you had a half brother that you didn't know existed until you were almost in college?" Shawn thought about it for a moment, leaning back in his chair and twiddling his thumbs.

"I mean, do I sometimes wish my life was a little different? Yeah." Shawn admitted. "But I wouldn't regret the way I was brought up. It led me to some great friends...friends like you, Topanga and Angela." As soon as Shawn said Topanga's name, she entered the living room while appearing skittish, Cory widening his eyes at his wife and wondering what was bothering her.

"Topanga? What about Topanga? Topanga's not hiding anything! Not at all! No siree! No she's not!" Topanga laughed nervously before heading back to her room, Cory letting out a smirk.

"She's hiding a secret." Cory simply said, Shawn appearing surprised by Cory's sentence. "She does that every time someone asks her to keep a secret from me. I wonder who it was this time?" Shawn let out an exaggerated scoff, glancing away from his best friend.

"Gee, I have no idea but I hope she doesn't ruin the person's secret!" Shawn said aloud, with hopes Topanga heard him, his eyes darting back to Cory. "So, how about a sundae?"

"Gee, you know me so well." Cory giddily replied, the two of them going towards Cory's fridge so they could make themselves an ice cream sundae.

* * *

Riley sat by the bay window that evening as she held her pillow close to her, feeling absolute betrayed that Lucas had completely reinvented himself into someone he wasn't. Riley wans't liking this Lucas...in fact, she never would have become friends with this Lucas, seeing how he was so rough around the edges. Riley heard a knock on the bay window, noticing Maya was on the other side.

"Riley? Can I come in please?" Maya wondered, Riley holding the pillow tighter. Maya showed her the bag in her hand, Riley appearing interested. "I have chocolate cake..." Riley reluctantly opened the bay window and let Maya in, Maya closing the door behind her and sitting next to her friend. "I always heard chocolate was good for the soul. Maybe chocolate can help mend your heart too." Riley took the chocolate cake from Maya and took a ginormous bite, Maya giving her friend a confused look. "Riley, slow down."

"Sorry, but you know how I get when I stress eat." Riley answered, glancing down at her chocolate cake. She cleared her throat before her eyes darted back to Maya, Maya folding her hands and giving her a saddened look. "Do you think Lucas is going to come back or is he going to stay this way forever?"

"I don't know..." Maya honestly answered. "I'm gonna be honest. I actually liked the old Lucas. He was smart and funny and he was an amazing friend. And then he'd give those bear hugs that make you feel like everything was going to be okay, and nothing was ever going to get in the way of him protecting you. Not to mention...have you seen his muscles? They're like...wow...and..." Maya stopped talking when Riley gave her a look of realization, Maya wondering what had Riley so upset. 'Riley, what's the matter?" Riley cleared her throat and looked away from Maya, trying to find the words to say.

"You like him." Riley turned back towards Maya, Maya shaking her head slightly. "That's exactly the way I would talk about him...and you like him. Was this the reason that you didn't want me and Lucas to be together? Because then it'd mean you'd have no shot with him?"

"Riley, I don't like Ranger Rick." Maya said, but Riley wasn't convinced.

"You're lying." Riley declared. "You're lying through your perfectly white teeth." Maya thought about it for a moment as she leaned back on the window, wondering if Riley was actually right. "I mean, you make fun of him all the time, yet you're his friend. You do it because you like him..."

"Riley, when I gave you that advice, I did not like him like that." Maya honestly said.

"So what changed?" Riley asked, Maya glancing down at her hands with sadness.

"I guess the fact he put on a leather jacket and started taking lunch money from kids..." Maya responded, Riley putting her hand over her mouth. "Oh come on, you probably thought he was cute in that jacket too!"

"Maya, I don't want Lucas if he's going to act that way." Riley said. "That's not the Lucas I know, that's not the Lucas that I fell in love with!"

"Wait, you're in love with Lucas?" Maya questioned, but Riley put her hand up.

"We're not talking about my feelings right now." Riley sounded upset. "Maya, why didn't you tell me that you liked Lucas."

"Because I was hoping my feelings would go away? Okay?" Maya sighed. "I was hoping they'd go away because I know how much you liked him and how much he liked you. The last thing I ever want to is hurt you, Riley..."

"Well you did..." Riley sighed. "You did hurt me...because I don't know if it was your heart giving me the advice that I should stay friends with Lucas...or if it was your feelings for Lucas that did. I think you need to be by yourself right now..." Riley started walking away and grabbed the bag full of cake. "I'm taking the cake with me!" Riley left the room as Maya furrowed her eyebrows, feeling sadness that Riley was upset with her. Maya didn't want to like Lucas, especially since she knew that Riley and Lucas were somewhat a thing, but she also didn't want to suffer when it came to her feelings. She knew how hurt Riley was that two of her friends betrayed her that day...and she wanted to make things right. She had to get someone to talk to Lucas so that he could change back for Riley.

* * *

The next morning, Riley entered the school as she held her backpack close to her, noticing that Lucas was with some of the rebel kids, taking kids lunch money. Riley furrowed her eyebrows and decided to walk over. If Maya wasn't going to fix this problem, then Riley was going to have to herself.

"Hey, Lucas. We need to talk." Riley stuffed her hands in her pockets, Lucas staring at her and shaking his head.

"Not now, I'm a little busy." Lucas replied, turning around as he continued to bully the other kid, but Riley pulled him away, taking him near her locker and pointing a finger at him. "Riley, I was just about to get his lunch money before you showed up. First Maya, now you?"

"Lucas, this is not you." Riley felt her heart break as she said that, Lucas staring at her while shrugging his shoulders. "I know who the real Lucas Friar is...he's sweet, and kind...and he's a terrific friend. He's the one that always picks me up when I'm down and he's always there for Farkle when Farkle needs someone to talk to. And he's always there for Maya even when she does something she's not supposed to be doing. Lucas, please don't do this...please don't change because your friends love you the way you are..." Riley took a deep breath taking a step closer and putting a hand on his chest. _"I_ love you the way you are..." Lucas was slightly taken aback before Riley cleared her throat, looking away from him. "I remember when I first met you, and I fell into your lap on the subway and you didn't mind...I remember when you told me the story that you helped a horse give birth on your farm in Texas, and I thought it was the sweetest thing in the world. I remember how you stood up for Farkle when he was being bullied how you stood up for me when I was being cyberbullied. I remember how you helped Maya get back the arts, because you know how important it was to her. That's who you are...and that was the person I fell in love with. I know it's love because I've felt the same way since the seventh grade, and I don't think I'm ever going to stop." Lucas felt his face soften as Riley started taking a step back. "That was the guy I loved...but you're not that guy anymore...so now I don't know if I love you." Riley walked away from Lucas as he stared at her, looking back at the kid with the lunch money, deciding to let out a deep breath and make his way to one of the classrooms. He knocked on the door slowly and stuffed his hands in his pockets, seeing Cory was grading tests. Cory glanced up from the doorway and spotted Lucas, motioning for him to come in.

"Mr. Friar. Come in..." Cory said, Lucas entering and taking a seat across from him.

"I was wondering if I could get some advice." Lucas said, Cory nodding his head and motioning for Lucas to continue. Before they got any further, Shawn opened the door to the classroom and Lucas appeared perplexed, noticing Shawn was heading towards Cory's desk with a smile.

"Cory, I got you your favorite sandwich for lunch. I hope you don't mind." Shawn grinned, Cory giving Shawn a cheeky grin of his own.

"Are the crusts cut off?" Cory asked, Shawn nodding his head and giving a grin. "Gosh, I love you Shawny!"

"I know you do, Cory..." Shawn couldn't help but laugh slightly, but he was surprised that Lucas was sitting there wearing a leather jacket and a skull shirt, Shawn putting his hands in the air while pretending to be scared. "Yikes, we got ourselves a rebel here. You're Lucas, right?"

"Yeah...how do you know my name?" Lucas wondered, Shawn shrugging his shoulders.

"Riley talks about you all the time." Shawn answered. "She always tells me about how you help animals and how you're always kind to others. She didn't tell me that you dress like you're from _Grease_." Lucas stared down at his outfit before glancing up at Shawn, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

"I normally don't dress like I'm from _Grease_." Lucas admitted. "I'm just upset...but...it's something you might not understand."

"Let me guess? Someone or something told you were a nobody, you felt like someone or something was right, so you changed your persona because you felt like no one should care about you, and that no one should fight for what you want to do in life." Shawn asked, Lucas giving Shawn an inquisitive look.

"Yeah, that's how I feel..." Lucas answered. "But how did you know?"

"Because the same thing happened to me." Shawn revealed. "Lucas, I've had a very hard life. My mother was never in the picture, my dad was in and out of my life before dying of a heart attack, I didn't know I had a half brother named Jack for half of my life and I always felt like I didn't belong anywhere, that I was a burden to others. Do you want to know what changed that?"

"What changed that?" Lucas pondered, Shawn turning and seeing Cory was smiling back at him.

"Having a good friend like Cory." Shawn said. "Cory saw something I didn't even see in myself, and I proved everyone that told me I was going to amount to nothing wrong. I now blog and take pictures, I discovered I love to be behind the camera and I feel like I'm a pretty good role model to Riley's friend Maya. I know life is scary, and in four years you're going to be a senior ready to graduate High School and head off to college. But you have to believe that you aren't what someone else. You're what _you_ say, and what do you say about yourself?" Lucas stared at Shawn for a moment before leaning back in his chair, thinking and glancing up at him.

"My uncle always told me I was never going to amount to anything." Lucas said. "He said that I didn't have any skills and that I wasn't going to be successful in life. So when I saw the results of my career aptitude test, I guess I freaked out and I thought, maybe my uncle was right. Maybe I am a nobody and maybe I wasn't meant to make a difference in this world."

"What was your result?" Shawn asked.

"It said _N/A_." Lucas replied. "Which in other words means that I'm not destined for anything."

"You're not destined for anything? Or you have so many talents that the test couldn't give you just one job?" Shawn smiled softly, causing Lucas to think for a moment. "This is a half-full, half-empty situation. You assumed the results were a half-empty glass of orange juice. But you should have saw it as half-full. Your friends got careers because it was based on their personalities. The test probably thought you were so complex or you had too many talents to give you just one job. That probably meant that you're destined to be whatever you want to be." Lucas continued to stare at Shawn who shrugged his shoulders slightly. "I think having infinite possibilities is better than having one possibility, don't you think?" Lucas continued glancing at Shawn before Shawn started making his way towards the door, exiting and leaving Lucas to ponder. Lucas stood silent for a few minutes before pointing towards the door that Shawn previously went out of.

"Where did he learn knowledge like that?" Lucas asked Cory, who was admiring the sandwich that Shawn had bought him. Cory thought for a few minutes before leaning back in his chair, a smile appearing on his face.

"Shawn and I had one of the best teachers a student could ever have." Cory thought fondly about Mr. Feeny, before clearing his throat. "You know Lucas, you're destined for great things. I think you need to give yourself more credit than you already do." Lucas nodded his head and got up from his seat, leaving the classroom and stopping at Shawn who was standing right outside the doorway.

"Thank you." Lucas said, Shawn patting Lucas on the back before Lucas walked away. As Shawn stood there, he noticed Maya and Farkle coming out from the lockers, the both of them glancing up at Shawn and giving him a smile.

"Thanks for talking to him, Shawn." Maya said, Shawn giving the two kids a grin in return.

"You're welcome." Shawn's face turned into confusion when he noticed Farkle and Mays in the locker, him bending down so he could look at them from their level. "Why are you guys in a locker?"

"We thought it was the only place we could hide where Lucas wouldn't find us." Farkle smiled, Maya shrugging her shoulders in response.

"I also found the lockers to be rather comfortable." Maya added, Shawn patting the both of their heads before walking away, deciding it was for the best to not ask questions.

* * *

Riley entered the house as she looked around sadly, seeing her mother was tapping her fingers on the table and appearing disheveled. Riley walked over and sat across from her, Topanga glancing at her daughter with interest.

"Mom, it's obvious that you're hiding something from dad and he's going to figure it out." Riley said, Topanga releasing a sigh.

"I know, but I'm not so good with the whole lying thing." Topanga replied. "I wished I was so that it wouldn't feel like the world's biggest mission to hide a surprise birthday party from your father." While Topanga and Riley were talking, they didn't notice Auggie was sticking his head out from the pile of toys that were there, with him slowly slinking away towards Cory's room in order to tell him the news.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out. You always do." Riley did her best to give a smile, but Topanga noticed there was something wrong with her daughter.

"Riley? What's the matter, honey?" Topanga asked, running a hand through her daughter's hair. Riley tried to come up with the words but instead she was getting up from her seat and walking towards her mom on the other side of the kitchen table.

"My heart feels like it was broken in a million pieces." Riley said, Topanga giving her daughter a softened look. "I don't think the real Lucas is coming back and then I found out that Maya likes Lucas, which was why she didn't want me to get involved with him."

"I know, honey. Having your heart break is the worst thing a girl could go through." Topanga gave her daughter a hug. "And I know that it hurts right now, but in time it's going to get better. But wait, Maya likes Lucas? Why?"

"He wore a leather jacket." Riley simply answered before she whispered. "Between you and me, it's only 80%."

"What Maya has was probably just a temporary crush..." Topanga sighed. "I'm guessing when Lucas changed into something he wasn't, Maya sort of liked it. But in reality, Maya doesn't really know what she wants when it comes to love."

"I think that's why Uncle Josh is afraid to come back here." Riley muttered, Topanga smiling and pressing a kiss to the top of Riley's head.

"Yeah, that could be why." Topanga chuckled. "But Riley, in reality..., I don't think Maya likes Lucas. I think she likes the idea of Lucas as a bad boy..."

"She's right." Riley looked towards the door and saw Maya walk in, stuffing her hands in her pockets. "I did like the idea of Lucas as a bad boy...but I also liked the influence you made on him. And that's why he's better with you. I probably remind him of what he was like in Texas...and you remind him of the person he is in New York. Riley, I didn't tell you that I sort of had a tiny crush on Bad Boy Lucas because I didn't want to hurt you...and I didn't want to get in the way of your love for him. You love him, Riley...it's obvious. And instead of trying to say that he should be your friend and your friend only...I should have encouraged you to be happy. And for that I apologize." Riley walked over to Maya as she the two of them stared at each other, Riley holding her arms out to hug Maya. Maya went into Riley's embrace as the two of them smiled, but their moment was interrupted when Farkle bust through the door, pointing to the both of them with urgency.

"Bay window! Now!" Farkle instructed, causing Riley and Maya to run towards Riley's room. As soon as Riley opened the door, she spotted Lucas sitting there, his eyes glancing at her with a sorry expression.

"Lucas..." Riley stuffed her hands in her pockets, with Maya and Farkle glancing at her with worry. Riley noticed Lucas was dressed in his normal clothes, and he was folding his hands together with hopes that his friends would see that he was back to normal.

"Hey Riley." Lucas smiled softly, his eyes darting towards Farkle and Maya. "Farkle...Maya. How goes it?" Farkle and Maya cleared their throats before they noticed Lucas was speaking like himself too.

"Lucas, is this you?" Farkle wondered, Lucas shrugging his shoulders.

"Yeah, this is me." Lucas said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "You guys might be wondering why I had been acting so strange lately."

"Gee, that never crossed our minds at all." Maya sardonically stated, Lucas giving a slight smile.

"Well, let's just say I was looking at my aptitude test results all wrong." Lucas explained. "Yes, it said that it couldn't find a career for me and at first I was thinking negatively. I thought you guys were going to be having careers of your own while I was stuck here...thinking I wasn't worthy of anything. But this week, I realized I am worthy. I'm worthy to myself, I'm worthy to my friends...and I'm worthy to you, Riley." Riley smiled softly while tucking her hair behind her ears, Lucas glancing at his friends again. "I am so sorry about the way I treated you guys this week, and I'm sorry I became someone I wasn't..."

"It's okay." Farkle said. "We're your friend Lucas, and we want what's best for you...just know, that we're always going to be here when you're insecure about something." Lucas nodded his head before walking towards Riley, seeing she was glancing up at him with a confused look. Lucas grabbed her hands and held them firmly, Riley smiling softly as they looked into each other's eyes.

"I am so sorry, Riley." Lucas said above a whisper, not noticing that Topanga was placing her hand over her heart and Farkle and Maya were sharing a smile. "I was dumb to listen to a sheet of paper over my friends...over _you_...and I promise that I will never change into someone you don't want me to be." Riley looked over at Maya, noticing Maya was nodding her head, Riley glancing back at Lucas while her cheeks turned red.

"Lucas, you don't have to change yourself for me. Okay? Just promise me that the next time someone or something bothers you...that you'll come to me...because I'm here to help you and I want you to understand that you're not alone. You are worth more than what that paper says..., you're one of a kind Lucas. Just know that, okay?" Lucas nodded his head as Riley smiled up at him, taking another deep breath. "Guys, do you think Lucas and I can have a minute alone?" Farkle and Topanga nodded their heads and left, but Maya hung around for a moment, furrowing her eyebrows and studying Lucas intently.

"What do you usually do on the weekends?" Maya asked what seemed to be a random question.

"Well on the weekends I feed the hungry and help puppies get adopted at the shelter." Lucas answered, Maya rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, he's Lucas The Good again. How cringeworthy." Maya turned around and patted Riley on the shoulder. "Good luck to you." Maya walked out of the room and closed the door behind her, Riley grabbing Lucas's hand and leading him towards the bay window. As Lucas sat down, Riley grabbed his other hand, the two of them staring into each other's eyes with a smile.

"Lucas, I know this is going to sound a little silly...," Riley muttered before she became confident. "I've liked you for a long time, Lucas...ever since I fell into your lap on the subway train. I guess the thing that worries me is that..., I know we have these strong feelings about each other but the truth is I'm scared. I'm scared that if we date and end up hating each other, that we're going to make things awkward between our group of friends. I don't want to complicate things for Maya and Farkle."

"You're right, it would be complicated..." Lucas said before looking up at Riley softly. "But it doesn't mean we can't try, right?" Riley gave him a softened look while Lucas sat closer to her. "I know that deep down in my heart, I could never hate you...and I know for a fact that you feel the same way about me. I love that you're spontaneous and creative...and unique! I mean, you're the princess of Rileytown. No other person could be as creative as you and come up with their own city...make their own flag and write their own anthem."

"It took four days to write the anthem...and while I am the princess, this princess still needs her horse. Maybe one named Fluffy with a pretty white mane and...lots and lots of chestnut spots..." Riley felt her smile get wide as Lucas let out a chuckle.

"Well, I don't know about a horse, since I'm not sure where to find one in New York..." Lucas felt his face get closer to Riley's, seeing she was glancing at him. "But would the princess of Rileytown like a prince of Rileytown? After all, two heads are better than one." Riley stared at Lucas while gripping onto his hand, nodding her head slowly and leaning closer. She pressed her lips to Lucas's as he smiled, kissing her back while feeling Riley's lips curve into a grin. After a few moments, they broke apart the kiss, Riley giving Lucas a hug.

"Was you asking to be the prince of Rileytown a way of you asking to be my boyfriend?" Riley stared back at Lucas as he nodded his head.

"I know, I had to get _really_ creative." Lucas teased, Riley smiling and giving him another kiss. She eventually got up from the bay window and held her hand out for Lucas to take, him grabbing it and standing next to her. "I have a feeling this is going to work out..."

"Yep, I think so too..." Riley agreed, with her going towards her closet and grabbing the flag that she made for Rileytown. "I think it's time we sing the anthem so we can introduce the prince of Rileytown..."

"Let's do it." Lucas shrugged his shoulders while giving her a smile, the both of them holding onto the flag and giving each other a smile.

" _Rileytown, oh Rileytown!_ " Lucas and Riley sang in unison, not noticing that Farkle and Maya were standing by the bay window with a smile on their face.

* * *

"I should ask you where you're taking me, especially since it's a Saturday night." Cory sighed as he and Topanga walked towards the bakery, Topanga holding Cory's hand and giving him a smile.

"Why? You don't like secrets? I love keeping secrets!" Topanga once again let out a nervous giggle, Cory chuckling at her.

"There's a party for me in here, isn't there?" Cory asked, Topanga appearing dumbfounded.

"How did you know?" Topanga let out a relieved sigh, Cory glancing around and staring at his wife.

"Auggie tells me stuff." Cory responded, Topanga leaning her head on Cory's shoulder.

"I'm sorry...I just wanted to help Shawn keep this a secret...and this was Shawn's present for you since he couldn't be here for your actual birthday last month." Topanga replied. "I hope you don't think it was lying."

"No, it's not lying." Cory chuckled. "You helping Shawn keep this a secret was actually really sweet. Thank you..." Topanga smiled as Cory leaned in to kiss her, the two of them getting lost in their own little moment. Cory parted the kiss and pulled Topanga inside, noticing the lights were dark. "Oh boy, the lights are off in here! I wonder what's going to happen if I turn on the lights!" Cory flicked the light on and noticed everyone popping out of their respective spots.

"SURPRISE!" Cory put his hand over his heart as he pretended to be surprised, Shawn walking over and giving his best friend a hug.

"How you like the surprise?" Shawn asked, Cory glancing around and nodding his head.

"This is great Shawn...thank you." Cory grinned as he went to go greet the other guests. Shawn walked over to Topanga and glanced at her, seeing she was sheepishly staring at him.

"You told him, didn't you?" Shawn chuckled, Topanga shrugging her shoulders

"Auggie 'tells him stuff'." Topanga nonchalantly stated while Shawn patted Topanga on the shoulder. Topanga and Shawn couldn't help but glance at Cory in his childlike state, and while they knew they were all growing up, one thing that would never change about them was that they were friends, and they were going to be that way for the rest of their lives.


	5. 1x05: Girl Meets Hart to Hart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maya gets involved with the school newspaper and finds her new gossip column "Hart to Hart" is a hit. Unfortunately, it hits a nerve with Riley, Farkle and Lucas when their secrets are revealed to the student body. Riley and Lucas decide to test drive their romantic relationship but have to deal with the wrath of Cory when he finds out they're dating.

                                                                            

* * *

_**ACT 1  
** _

* * *

Riley sat at the kitchen table that morning as she poured herself a glass of orange juice, thinking back to what had happened over the last few days. In just a few days she went from being just friends with Lucas to being his girlfriend, and today was the first day they would go to school together as a couple. She was anticipating it because it was a chance to call Lucas hers, but she also was nervous because her father had no idea that she and Lucas were now an item. Everyone else knew...they just made sure they kept Cory out of the loop until Riley and Lucas were ready to share. As Riley continued sipping her orange juice, the door to the house opened and it was Maya, Maya walking towards the fridge and grabbing the carton of milk. She placed the carton to her lips and drank some of the milk, Riley widening her eyes as she saw Maya shake her head with the milk still inside her mouth. Maya swallowed it and let out a refreshed, 'Ah' noise, her eyes wandering back to Riley who was folding her hands and staring at her with slight disgust.

"What are you doing?" Riley asked, Maya pointing towards the carton with a smile.

"Getting some Vitamin C..." Maya answered as if it was obvious. She offered Riley the carton but she noticed Riley shook her head at Maya's slight gesture. "You don't want any?"

"Not with your backwash." Riley answered, Maya staring at the carton with curiosity.

"So...you guys _don't_ drink from the carton here?" Maya asked, Riley shaking her head and giving her friend a chuckle.

"No, we don't drink from the carton here." Riley replied, Maya going towards the table and sitting across from her friend.

"So if that's the case... _don't_ drink from the orange juice." Maya warned her, although Riley stared at her cup of orange juice with shock before glancing up at Maya.

"I can never drink orange juice again." Riley got up from her chair and went to pour the orange juice in the sink, which caused her to stare at the clock that was hanging from the kitchen wall. "Why are you here so early? You're _never_ here early...unless school was cancelled and there's a bunch of snow outside."

"I know, I surprise myself sometimes..." Maya said before she pointed a finger at Riley. "I am here because I heard Lucas was picking you up so you guys could go to school together." Maya smirked. "And I want to see the look on your dads face when Lucas acts all lovey dovey towards you." Riley immediately shushed her friend, Maya giving Riley a confused look while Riley glanced around to make sure her father wasn't in hearing distance.

"He doesn't know." Riley said, Maya furrowing her eyebrows.

"He doesn't know you and Ranger Rick are an item now?" Maya pondered.

"I couldn't tell him, Maya." Riley sighed, her walking over and sitting across from her friend. "If I told him then he was going to give Lucas these looks and..., you saw how he got when Lucas and I were friends, imagine when he finds out we're together."

"Oh, he's gonna blow his gasket." Maya understood.

"More than his gasket, his head might explode." Riley added, releasing a sigh. "I just want this to go off with no problems. I mean, Lucas and I are already taking a risk by dating, and we don't want to ruin our friendship with you guys."

"You won't ruin anything, but you will if you keep thinking it's not going to work out." Maya encouraged her. "Just...live in the moment, okay. You and Lucas deserve to be happy and I want you guys to be happy." Riley nodded her head as there was a knock on the door, Riley smoothing her skirt and going towards the door. She opened it and saw Lucas on the other side, holding a pair of bolt cutters.

"I saw this at the front of the building and it has the initials 'M.H.' on it. I'm guessing Maya used these to open the front door without you having to ring her in." Lucas looked at Maya who smiled widely at the bolt cutters Lucas had in his hand.

"So _that's_ where I left them!" Maya walked over and hugged the bolt cutters tightly. "It's okay...mommy's got you..." Maya walked away from both Riley and Lucas, the both of them glancing at each other with an amused look.

"While Maya tends to her bolt cutters..." Lucas pointed to Maya before he gave Riley an affectionate smile. "Good morning, Riley."

"Good morning, Lucas." Riley responded, Lucas immediately looking around the house. "Is something wrong?"

"Is your dad here?" Lucas wondered, Riley staring behind her. "I like your dad, don't get me wrong...I just don't want him to kill me before my 16th birthday." Riley ran a hand through her hair while giving him an adorable smile.

"He's probably getting ready to give us a life lesson." Riley responded, grabbing his hands and holding them firmly. "But he's not here at this moment..." Riley leaned up to kiss him as Lucas did the same, but before their lips touched...

"Good morning, Riley. Good morning, Lucas." Riley closed her eyes and pursed her lips in slight frustration, turning around and seeing her mother was behind her. Topanga gave the two of them a smile before walking over to the kitchen. "It's so nice to see you and Maya here to walk Riley to school, Lucas." Topanga noticed Maya was hugging her bolt cutters close to her, Topanga pointing at Maya with interest. "Maya, why do you...why am I asking if I'm only going to find out later?" Topanga sat down at the kitchen table, Riley walking over to her mother.

"Mom..." Riley gave a fake smile as Topanga raised her eyebrow. "Don't you have something to do...that's not here?"

"I wish I did but I don't. Besides, I'm here to warn you that your father finished showering so he'll be out in five minutes. I suggest you get a head start on going to school before he comes out and breaks every bone in Lucas's body." Topanga noticed Lucas became panicked and that caused Riley to turn around.

"Okay, time for school." Riley went to grab her bag but noticed Farkle enter the room, with his fingers pointed at both Riley and Maya.

"Ladies!" Farkle said, but Lucas automatically put an arm around Riley's shoulder, Farkle getting the hint that Riley was off the market. He moved his pointed finger directly towards Maya and decided to try again. "Maya!"

"Bolt cutter!" Maya held it up before walking past him. "Let's get to school. Maybe I can break into the principal's office and get my cell phone back..."

"Maya." Topanga stated, Maya turning around and noticing Topanga was motioning for her to hand over the bolt cutter. Maya looked down at it before slowly handing it to Topanga, letting out a strangled cry as Topanga put it away.

"You know it's true love when it's forbidden..." Maya clutched her hand over her chest as Farkle walked up to her, putting a hand on Maya's shoulder.

"It's going to be okay. You'll move on." Farkle told her, Maya and Farkle slowly leaving the house while Riley and Lucas grabbed their bags, heading out the door so they could begin another day at school.

* * *

                                                           

* * *

Lucas and Riley both had a pep in their step as they entered John Quincy High School, Lucas holding onto Riley's hand as Riley smiled up at him adoringly. Lucas noticed there were envious looks from the cheerleaders that were on the squad with Riley, and he knew he was a pretty big catch just for being on the basketball team. But Lucas was happily taken, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Lucas and Riley entered the history classroom hand in hand as Riley took a seat next to Lucas's regular desk, Farkle and Maya following and Farkle realizing that Riley was in his usual seat.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Riley, that's my desk." Farkle pointed towards the desk as Riley smiled at Farkle. "What makes you think that you can sit at _my_ desk." Lucas simply held up his and Riley's intertwined hands, Lucas and Riley sending Farkle a smirk.

"Girlfriend." Was all Lucas said, which caused Farkle to take the seat that was usually occupied by Riley.

"No way, this is causing a disruption to the time space continuum." Maya sighed. "Riley, this is where you usually sit, you can't just sit next to Bucky McBoing Boing. Why are you doing this to me?" Riley held up her and Lucas's intertwined hands, giving Maya another smile.

"Boyfriend." Was all Riley said, which caused Maya to groan and sit down at her usual desk. Cory entered the room with his history books but he suddenly stopped, feeling that there was something out of place. He just didn't know what. He glanced around the room before his eyes landed on the front of the classroom, noticing that Farkle, Maya, Riley and Lucas were sitting in a different formation.

"What do we got here?" Cory asked, motioning towards the four of them. Maya and Farkle stared at each other before pointing back to Riley and Lucas.

"Girlfriend." Farkle said.

"Boyfriend." Maya added, the both of them going towards Riley and Lucas's hands and showing Cory their intertwined fingers. Cory's eyes widened before he stared at Lucas, Lucas letting out a gulp and Riley becoming surprised. "Oh wait, that's right. I wasn't supposed to tell you." Maya snapped her fingers after a while, Cory pointing straight at Lucas.

"You!" He then pointed to Riley who gave her dad a meek smile. "You?" He then used both his fingers to point to both of them, Riley and Lucas glancing at one another. "Together?"

"Sir, you're going to have to speak in complete sentences if you want us to understand you." Lucas raised his other hand while Cory let out a frustrated groan.

"Yeah, it's very caveman-ish." Maya added. Cory didn't understand how this could happen, but when he saw Farkle and Maya twiddling their thumbs, he once again figured that they knew something he didn't.

"When did it happen?" Cory asked Farkle, Farkle staring up at Cory and appearing surprised.

"Friday." Farkle answered.

"Why?" Cory asked again.

"Because Lucas and Riley had feelings for each other since the seventh grade. Please don't kill me now." Farkle put his hands up in defense. "I want to live long enough so I can rule the world." Cory once again stared at his daughter before snapping his fingers towards their hands.

"Let go of his hand, Riley." Cory instructed, Riley and Lucas staring at each other with shock.

"But his hands feel like velvet." Riley gave Lucas a dreamy look.

"And her hands smell like vanilla." Lucas added.

"It's the moisturizer I use..." Riley gave a light giggle, but Maya went and grabbed Riley's hand away from Lucas's, Riley looking surprised. "LUCAS! We're so far away!"

"I know!" Lucas responded in the same exaggerated tone Riley had previously used.

"Oh for the love of Belgium, you're only two feet apart from each other." Cory sounded annoyed but Farkle immediately perked up.

"Wait, are we finally learning about Belgium today?" Farkle appeared excited, Cory slapping his hand on his forehead and going back to the front of the classroom. Cory wrote the words 'School Newspaper' as Farkle stared at Maya with interest.

"Um, Mr. Matthews sir, this is history class." Lucas said, Cory turning around and pointing his finger at Lucas.

"I know what class this is, he who's name will not be said because he's dating my daughter!" Lucas slinked in his seat while Riley appeared confused, Cory clearing his throat. "I'm in charge of the school newspaper this year, and that means we need people to write different sections. We need someone to do the science section, world news, and of course the famous gossip column. If you're interested, then sign up at the front. We'll hold meetings after school."

"We should totally do the school newspaper." Farkle turned to Riley, Maya and Lucas, seeing they were shrugging their shoulders.

"I don't think so." Maya said, crossing her arms. "It means we have to research stuff. And I hate anything that involves you memorizing information...unless it's a television show because those dang writers always have continuity errors that I love to point out to them on Twitter."

"Come on Maya." Farkle wiggled his eyebrows, Maya glaring at him. "It will be fun. _I'm_ joining the school newspaper."

"Yeah, and that's exactly the reason _why_ I'm not joining the school newspaper." Maya retorted, Lucas and Riley letting out a sigh.

"Ah, young love." Riley folded her hands, Maya and Farkle turning towards Riley.

"Hold up, just because you and Ranger Rick are a thing, doesn't mean Farkle and I are..." Maya scoffed. "It will never happen." Her eyes shifted towards Farkle, pointing a finger at him. " _We_ will never happen."

"Sure, that's what you think." Farkle smirked, Maya rolling her eyes. "But come on Maya, you get to make a difference in your school community, talk about the issues that matter." Farkle then became uninterested as he mentioned the parts of the newspaper he wasn't fond of. "Plus there's also the _boring_ entertainment section where people write nothing but gossip about other people." Maya raised an eyebrow, glancing at Farkle with interest.

"Wait, did you just say the entertainment section?" Maya sounded excited. She raised her hand as Cory pointed at her, Maya folding her hands as if she were Riley. "Mr. Matthews, there is an entertainment section in the school newspaper, correct?"

"Yes. There is." Cory nodded his head, Maya immediately raising her hand.

"Mr. Matthews, Farkle and I would like to join the school newspaper!" Maya sounded excited, with Cory smiling at them. Lucas leaned closer to Riley, his eyebrows going up while his eyes were locked on Maya and Farkle.

"Something tells me this is not going to end well..." Lucas whispered, but he noticed Cory was next to him, putting his hand on Lucas's shoulder and Lucas staring at Riley's father.

"You're right...," Cory squeezed Lucas's shoulder as Riley furrowed her eyebrows. "It's not going to end well..." Lucas and Riley once again stared at each other, realizing they were in quite the dilemma of their own. And this dilemma, they weren't sure how they were going to get out of.

* * *

That afternoon, Riley, Maya, Farkle and Lucas sat in Riley's room by the bay window while they were doing homework. Lucas looked up at the door every few moments as Riley continued writing in her notepad, but Maya and Farkle stared at Lucas who was still staring at the door, Maya wondering if she should ask if all was well with Lucas.

"All right, Ranger Rick..." Maya folded her hands. "What has you acting so squirrelly?" Lucas stared at Maya before pointing towards the door, Riley glancing at him with confusion.

"I'm scared of Mr. Matthews..." Lucas admitted. "I think he dislikes me, Riley. I don't want him to hate me because I like you, but then again he always thought I was a threat."

"I honestly don't see how Mr. Matthews thinks you could be a threat." Maya scoffed until her face dawned onto realization. "The worst thing you'd probably convince Riley to do is bring home a bunch of puppies where they create their own puppy colony. And one day the world will be ruled by dogs. Then we'd have to fetch and bring _them_ things and we'd be catering to _them!_ Gosh, you're a _terrible_ influence on her!" Lucas and Farkle gave Maya a muddled look, but Riley didn't hear her friend. Instead she was smiling widely.

"I didn't hear a word you said, Maya. I love puppies!" Riley gave her goofy smile as she stared at Lucas, Lucas laughing slightly while pointing at her.

"Honestly, how could anyone _not_ love this?" Lucas questioned, referring to Riley. Maya smirked before looking down at her notepad, Lucas realizing that she was interested in something. "You can't be doing homework because it's something that actually has your attention. So what do you got there?"

"This here, Ranger Rick is the beginning of my journalism career and my first article for my new gossip column called _Hart to Hart_." Maya smiled.

" _Hart to Hart_. How _punny_." Farkle chuckled, but Lucas shook his head at Maya, Riley and Farkle staring at Lucas with confusion.

"You're a gossip columnist." Lucas replied. "It's not real journalism."

"Hey, you're just jealous because I'm going to be in the school newspaper and you're not." Maya shrugged her shoulders. "I'm just glad I get to make a difference in the community."

"About writing about other people's lives." Farkle added, Riley pointing towards Farkle with her pen.

"Yeah, Farkle's right. You're writing about when Harry met Sally and when Jack and Jill went up the hill." Lucas said. "It's not real journalism because you're not pressing about the real issues. Like the cafeteria workers are going on strike because they're not getting fair pay. That should be broadcast and the student should be made aware of the situation."

"Ick, who wants to read about _that_?" Maya shuddered, going back to her notepad. "So far, I have Yogi stealing pencils from the algebra room and Sarah cutting in line in front of everyone else. Ooh, I don't think people are going to want to read that. They want to read the juicy gossip, they want to read what's hip, what's fresh, what's now. Farkle!"

"Yes ma'am!" Farkle looked up, Maya glancing at him.

"What is it that these whippersnappers want to read these days? Who is so popular that everyone wants to know what's going on in their everyday lives." Maya pointed a finger at him, Farkle closing his book.

"Well, I did hear in chemistry club that people were talking about Riley and Lucas." Farkle answered, Riley and Lucas looking up from their notebooks and glancing at Farkle with interest.

"You heard what now?" Lucas closed his notebook, Riley doing the same as they went on the floor, staring at Farkle intently.

"What did you hear?" Riley wondered.

"Tell us everything." Lucas added, Farkle putting his hand up in defense.

"They said that they had no idea that Lucas was into Riley. It was kind of a shocker to them." Farkle added, Maya listening intently. "And because Riley's a cheerleader and you're on the basketball team, you guys have somewhat become a power couple."

"We're a power couple?" Lucas and Riley stared at each other for a moment, letting the words that they were of everyone's interest sink in. Not only were they interested, but so was Maya, and everything she had been jotting down had been about her friends. People wanted to read stuff that they didn't know about Riley and Lucas...and that was when she realized she had her first column for _Hart to Hart_.

"Yeah, you guys are a pretty big deal." Farkle chuckled, Riley and Lucas shrugging their shoulders. "If I were you, I'd totally be honored."

"Yeah, but we're not the sensational couple." Lucas scoffed, Riley glancing over at him. "I just think it's a little absurd that people are focusing their attention on romance instead of the other issues."

"Yeah because everyone wants to know what happened during Belgium 1831." Maya rolled her eyes, but Farkle glanced up from his notebook, staring at her with a smile.

"I want to know what happened during Belgium 1831!" Farkle sounded excited but Maya placed her palm on her forehead.

"And you'd be the only one, Farkle." Maya responded.

"I just think that people should focus their interests elsewhere." Lucas said. "I mean, it's creepy just thinking about someone trying to spy on me and Riley from a window, just to see what we do next." As Lucas said that, he didn't notice Cory was glancing at Lucas from outside the closed bay window on the fire escape, Farkle's eyes widening and Maya trying her hardest not to laugh. Lucas noticed Maya's expression before his face turned stoic. "Mr. Matthews is right behind me, isn't he?"

"Gee, how did you guess?" Maya asked, Lucas turning around and seeing Cory was glaring at him. Lucas looked at the string that was attached to the curtains and tried his hardest to refrain from closing the curtains on his girlfriend's dad.

"If I close these curtains on him, he's gonna be really mad." Lucas stared at Riley, seeing she was giving him a smile. "Like really, really mad."

"He'd murder you and make sure we'd never find the body." Maya pointed out. Lucas turned towards the window and became uncomfortable with Cory's over the top face expression. Even Maya, Farkle and Riley were becoming a bit concerned. "All right, this has gone on far enough." Maya got up from her seat and pulled the curtain, waving at Cory in the process until the foursome couldn't see him anymore. Maya walked back to her position and sat down, but her eyes were still focused on Lucas and Riley. If the school wanted to read about them, then they were going to hear about them all right..., she just hoped Riley and Lucas wouldn't mind.

* * *

Topanga sat in the living room while helping Auggie with his homework, enjoying the peace and quiet that surrounded her. But she felt like there was something off when the door opened and she saw Cory with twigs and leaves on him. Topanga raised an eyebrow as Cory slowly entered the room, causing her to get up and walk over to her husband.

"Cory, I normally dismiss this behavior because I just assume it's _you_ being...well, _you_..." Topanga paused for a moment as Cory spat out a leaf, Auggie glancing at his parents with interest. "But what on earth happened to you?"

"Topanga, I'm not liking how close Texas is getting to my little girl!" Cory pointed his finger in the direction of Riley's room. "And...after Maya closed the window I tried to go down the fire escape after I locked myself out of the living room window. I then lost my footing and landed in a tree. I saw things...things that I can never un-see." Topanga couldn't help but chuckle at her husband, finding his overprotectiveness amusing.

"Cory, Riley was eventually going to show interest in boys." Topanga pointed out. "And Lucas is a very nice young man. I don't see the problem with Lucas and Riley showing just a little interest in each other. I for one think it's absolutely sweet."

"Sure ya do." Cory scoffed, going to the kitchen to grab an ice pack. "I don't like dating in this age. First, they look at each other, then they shake hands, and somehow in like 30 years or so, shaking hands leads to babies! I ain't ready for that!" Topanga rolled her eyes, walking over to her husband and placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Cory, you need to accept that your daughter is growing up and she's going to go through life experiencing feelings and...adventure." Topanga sounded passionate before pointing a finger at Cory. "And shaking hands does not lead to babies."

"So where do babies come from?" Auggie asked while sitting down on the couch, Cory and Topanga forgetting that Auggie was behind them. They had to think of something quick. It wasn't quite time for Auggie to have 'the talk' yet."

"Stork/Harry Potter." Topanga and Cory said respectively, but Topanga gave her husband a muddled from his answer.

"Harry Potter? _Really_?" Topanga said in disbelief, Cory shrugging his shoulders.

"He's magical, all right?" Cory argued. Topanga rolled her eyes and looked towards Auggie, walking towards her son and ruffling his hair.

"The stork. And that's as much of an explanation as you're going to get." Auggie seemed satisfied with Topanga's answer, folding his hands and Topanga looking back at Cory. "Cory, Riley's 14. I'm sure she can make her own decisions regarding her love life."

"I will not accept it." Cory crossed his arms, Auggie getting up from his chair and walking over to his father. Cory wondered what Auggie was going to say to him, but Auggie made it obvious when he poked Cory's chest and glared at him.

"Daddy, I'm going to tell you this very nicely: _Get over it, man!_ " Auggie yelled, walking past his father and Cory staring at Topanga with confusion.

"One of them's dating and the other one's standing up to his father. Kids grow up too fast." Cory shrugged his shoulders while Topanga gave her husband a loving look. Cory was just going to have to get used to his kids growing up...but it didn't mean he had to like it.

* * *

The next morning, Lucas walked towards his locker as he put the combination in, remembering that he had the basketball for practice that afternoon. As he opened his locker, he noticed Farkle walking towards him, handing Lucas what looked to be a newspaper. Lucas was surprised by Farkle wanting to hand him news with such urgency, but he slowly took it, giving his friend a smile.

"Is this the new newspaper that you and the rest of the history class was working on?" Lucas wondered.

"Yep, and you are going to love Maya's new column _Hart to Hart_. It's about things we didn't know about our classmates." Farkle clasped his hand, Lucas turning towards the page and his eyebrows furrowing. The smile came off his face as he stared at the article, realizing that Maya had wrote about him and Riley.

"Why did Maya write a column about things people didn't know about me and Riley?" Lucas sounded upset, Farkle becoming surprised that Lucas wasn't liking the article one bit. "And why did she include stuff that was private. I mean, she added that I was left back which I didn't want everyone to know. And she told everyone that Riley has award ceremonies for herself because it is tradition in Rileytown. That's supposed to be private and no one in this High School was supposed to know about that! Does she want someone to bully Riley again?"

"Oh come on, Lucas." Farkle didn't see the dilemma. "You are taking this way out of proportion."

" _WHERE IS SHE?_ " The voice said which caused Lucas and Farkle to turn around and realize it was Riley. Riley walked over and shoved the newspaper in Lucas's face, Lucas noticing where Riley was pointing. "She wrote in here that I have award ceremonies for myself...and she even admitted that once I saw a talking tater tot!"

"You saw a talking tater tot?" Lucas appeared muddled. "Riley, did you have the flu that day or something because...that's peculiar even for you?"

"It was my conscience in starchy form but that's not the point." Riley crossed her arms. "The point is Maya is telling stuff to the student body and it's some of our deepest and darkest secrets."

"We need to stop her." Lucas added, but Farkle didn't understand Riley and Lucas's urgency.

"Okay, you two are really overreacting." Farkle sighed. "I mean, so she said a few embarrassing things about you. _Hart To Hart_ is a gossip column.

"Oh, you think that we're over exaggerating?" Lucas turned the next page and handed it to Farkle. "Did you read what Maya wrote about you?" Farkle grabbed the paper and read the article Lucas was talking about, his face softening and his heart dropping. "What she said kind of wasn't nice..." Farkle stared at Riley as she stuffed her hands in her pockets, noticing he was walking a few feet away and still reading the article.

"She said that there was a possibility that I wasn't human." Farkle said. "Simply because my dad is Stuart Minkus and he has the ability to clone..."

"But hey...at least they found your birth certificate..." Lucas added, hoping to make Farkle feel better. "You're a real boy!" Farkle crumpled the paper and threw it in the garbage, his face turning angry.

"We must search and destroy her!" Farkle said in a maniacal tone, but Lucas furrowed his eyebrows, staring at him with confusion.

"We can't destroy Maya..." Lucas hesitantly said.

"Why _NOT_?!" Farkle bellowed.

"Well...for one thing...she'd die." Lucas said, placing a hand on Farkle's shoulder. "And I do not trust you with weapons."

"Well...we still must search for her." Farkle insisted as he, Lucas and Riley walked towards the cafeteria. They noticed people talking to Maya as Maya smiled, but Riley walked over and tapped Maya on the shoulder.

"Maya, we need to talk." Riley's tone was firm, but Maya didn't get the hint that Riley was upset with her.

"Not now, I'm busy." Maya shooed Riley away, but Riley simply grabbed her arm and pulled Maya to the side, Maya noticing the angry faces of Lucas, Riley and Farkle. "Okay, why are you pulling me away from everyone over there? They were talking about how great my column was."

"We wanted to tell you that we didn't like your column." Lucas said. "Your column was hurtful, mean...and you revealed stuff that we didn't want the world to know. You didn't even ask for our permission before you ran the article. Why did you do that?"

"Because Farkle said that you and Riley were the most talked about thing in school, so I wanted to get the inside scoop of everything you and Riley do...and then I somehow started writing about Farkle and everyone else in school." Maya shrugged her shoulders. "I assumed you guys were cool with it, and it's It's not that big of a deal."

"Yes it is, Maya." Riley furrowed her eyebrows. "You hurt our feelings. You wrote about Lucas being held back a year, and you wrote about the possibility Farkle wasn't human...and you wrote about how you saw me talking to a tater tot puppet! Now the whole world's gonna think I'm cuckoo!" Maya innocently blinked as Farkle stared at Lucas. "Maya, we don't want you writing about us anymore."

"Riley, you know how I always said that I would do anything for you?" Maya wondered, Riley nodding her head.

"Yes, we have friendship rings which symbolize that." Riley showed Maya her friendship ring although Maya gave her friend a saddened look.

"This is one of those times that I can't do anything for you." Maya's sentence caused Riley and Lucas to stare at each other with sadness before their eyes landed back on Maya. "I mean, those people love my column and they want more juicy details about you guys. I can't stop now."

"So you'd rather be like the paparazzi, writing stuff that we're embarrassed about, only for everyone else to get a good laugh?" Lucas wondered. "I thought we were your friends...but you're using our faults at your expense so your column can be popular."

"That's not what a real friend does, Maya." Riley added. "A real friend doesn't do what you did..."

"Come on guys, where's your humor?" Maya questioned, but Lucas simply took Riley's hand and led her out of the cafeteria, leaving only Maya and Farkle there. "Farkle, you understand...right?" Farkle nodded his head slowly, but the look on Farkle's face wasn't of understanding.

"Yeah, I understand completely." Farkle replied. "I understand that I can't trust you. We don't want you writing about us...but you're going to do it anyway. Well, how would you feel if I wrote a column about how your dad abandoned you and your mom?" Maya was taken aback as Farkle regretted what he said, but before Farkle had a chance to apologize, Maya put a hand up as if to stop him.

"Wow...low blow, Farkle." Maya scoffed, but Farkle turned around and left the cafeteria leaving Maya all by her lonesome. Why were Riley, Lucas and Farkle so upset about her gossip column, and why were they taking it so seriously? And what gave Farkle the right to make comments about her family life. There were some things that were just... _off limits_.

* * *

_**END ACT 1** _

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

Lucas and Riley entered the history classroom together while Lucas noticed everyone in the hallways was giving him and Riley looks, but they weren't the looks of interest that they were accustomed to. These looks of interest were because of Maya's gossip column and how the entire school knew about Riley, Lucas and Farkle's secrets. Lucas wasn't sure if he was going to even talk to Maya, but he realized he had a bigger problem when they entered the classroom and saw Maya and Farkle sitting far apart from each other, and a gigantic string in between both their desks. Lucas pondered whether he should say something which caused Riley to glanced back at him, but even though they were mad about what Maya said, they couldn't help but be concerned for their friends.

"What the what is going on here?" Lucas questioned, Riley walking over to Maya and Farkle.

"Farkle?" Riley questioned with Farkle glancing up at Riley with sadness. "Why is there a gigantic string in the middle of the room?"

"Maya put it here." Farkle answered, holding his jacket close to him and glancing away from Riley. Riley turned around and noticed Lucas was staring at Maya, this time him walking over to her desk and raising an eyebrow.

"Why did you put a gigantic string in the middle of the room?" Lucas pondered. "And you might want to move it so I can get to my desk because Mr. Matthews is out looking for blood and I'm his first victim." Maya didn't appear amused at the last part of Lucas's sentence, so she simply pointed at him with anger.

"Why don't you ask Farkle over there?" Maya huffed. "After all, he's good at breaking someone's spirit and unveiling things the entire school isn't supposed to know about."

"Oh don't make this about me, blondie!" Farkle shouted from across the room. "This is all your fault! You started it with your stupid gossip column, talking about things that should not have been talked about."

"So mentioning my dad abandoned me in retaliation was okay?" Maya sounded hurt while Farkle furrowed his eyebrows. "Farkle, that's an extremely touchy subject for me...because it reminds me of the things I don't have."

"Well guess how I feel when people say that I'm not human and that they need proof that I was actually born and not made in a scientific lab." Farkle retorted. "I honestly do not feel the need to apologize..."

"Good, cause I wasn't going to apologize to you either." Maya huffed, but Lucas and Riley glanced at one another with worry. "I didn't know it was a crime to express my thoughts and finally feel good about myself."

"Okay, you feel great about yourself." Lucas said, Maya staring at him with a furrowed eyebrow. "That's wonderful, Maya. But...how does everyone else feel? Was your newfound popularity worth hurting your friends?"

"Don't give me a lecture Ranger Rick. Everyone knows you ain't perfect." Maya pointed a finger at him, but they were interrupted when Cory entered the classroom and noticed the four of them standing around, but none of them looked happy. They struggled with saying what was on their minds, but Cory immediately walked over to Lucas who gave Riley a panicked look.

"What do we have here...," Cory tapped his fingers on Lucas's shoulder, causing him to stare at Cory with a worried look. "I got you right where I want you. You're shaking in your boots right now, aren't you?" Lucas stared at Cory while raising an eyebrow, Riley covering her eyes with her hands.

"If I say 'yes', you wouldn't think any less of me, would you sir?" Lucas meekly asked but Cory simply gave him a devilish grin, with Farkle and Maya glaring at one another. Riley observed the scene while she thought about how she was going to get her friends to get along again. She really need them all on the same page...and she wanted things to go back to normal.

* * *

Riley stood on the lunch line that afternoon as she looked at what she was going to eat, realizing her options varied from tater tots to pizza. Riley thought the tater tots looked appetizing and was actually considering them for her lunch, until she realized there were snickers behind her, which caused her to turn around and glance at the people who immediately stopped their snickering. Riley furrowed her eyebrows, thinking that it was nothing before going back to her cheerful stance and trying to choose her lunch. As Riley reached for the plate of tater tots, some of the kids behind her started to snicker which once again caused her to stare at them. She moved her hand away from the tater tots and started to go for the pizza, but a senior cut in line before her and took the last pizza which left Riley with just tater tots. Riley heard everyone laughing behind her which caused her to get out of line and head towards the table where Lucas was sitting with his lunch. Lucas looked up at Riley and saw she didn't have a tray which earned a look of concern.

"Riley, where's your food?" Lucas questioned, Riley sitting next to him and folding her hands.

"A senior cut in line and took the last pizza and that left me with nothing but...tater tots." Riley said. "Then I tried to grab a tray of tater tots but every time I tried everyone was laughing at me. I bet you it has to do with Maya's column." Lucas lightly rubbed her back before motioning towards his tray, pointing to the uneaten slice of pizza.

"I took two just in case something like that happened." Riley smiled softly at him while taking a bite out of the cafeteria pizza, Lucas taking a napkin and lightly removing some sauce from her cheek. Riley smiled while Lucas stared back at her but their moment was interrupted when some members of the basketball team walked over and had a tray of tater tots.

"Hey Riley," One of the basketball players said as Riley glanced at them. "I heard from the grapevine that you liked tater tots, so I just wanted to give you something." The basketball players placed a tray of tater tots in front of Riley as Lucas furrowed his eyebrows towards his teammates. "Now you have a bunch of friends to talk to." Some of the players high-fived one another as Riley stared at the tray in front of her, but Lucas got out from his seat and walked towards the captain.

"Hey, what is your deal?" Lucas sounded protective of Riley. "Leave her alone because she surely didn't do anything to you."

"Sorry, we just thought she was a little lonely and she needed more people to talk to..." The captain sneered. "You know how it is, Friar. Or maybe you don't...considering you had to repeat a grade. What happened? You weren't smart enough to pass the first time?" Lucas felt his anger boil while Riley looked at him with a worried look. Lucas took one glance at Riley before pointing at the captain of the squad, realizing it was better to not resolve the matter with violence.

"If this were Texas Lucas, a cowboy whooping would have gone down." Lucas said before backing away slightly. "Leave us alone. I mean it." Lucas noticed the basketball team rolling their eyes and walking away before he took a seat next to Riley. "I wasn't really going to beat them up, even if you weren't here." Riley patted the top of Lucas's head before giving him a knowing look.

"Sure you wouldn't have, honey." Riley saw Lucas give her a smile as she smiled back at him, but in the back of their minds they knew that Maya's column was affecting their lives. They were just afraid of how Farkle was doing, especially since what Maya said about him wasn't true to begin with.

* * *

Farkle loved the Robotics Club. It was one of the most exciting parts of his day and while he spent it away from his friends, he had a new batch of friends here, and they were all usually supportive. Farkle entered the room while waving to his friends, all of them glancing at him while Farkle gave a warm smile.

"Greetings fellow Robotics mates!" Farkle said, going towards his station and sitting down. "How are we all on this fine day?" One of the robotics kids whispered something into the other kids ear, causing them to get up and walk towards Farkle. Farkle sat at his table, unveiling his new robot when one of his teammates poked him in the side. "YEOW, what was that for?!" Farkle exclaimed, the person still glancing at Farkle with widened eyes.

"See, I told you he was real." One of the robotics members said, causing Farkle to furrow his eyebrows. "You owe me $20."

"Wait a minute." Farkle put his hand up to stop their talking before he realized what they were previously discussing. "Did you guys poke me because you read Maya's comment about how I'm not a 'real boy'?"

"We wanted to make sure that Miss Hart was being truthful is all." The other robotics member said which prompted Farkle to get up from his chair and leave the room. On the way to the doors, Farkle bumped into Lucas who was on his way to basketball practice, pointing to him and giving him a serious look.

"Lucas! I've had enough. It's time someone extracted some revenge on Maya..." Farkle declared. "I am not going to sit around and get confused for Pinocchio."

"All you would need is a wooden nose that poked out every time you told a lie. But wait, you're going to start your own gossip column and say something mean about Maya?" Lucas wondered. "Farkle, that's insane...even though the basketball team made fun of Riley and I this afternoon..."

"Riley and _me_." Farkle sighed. "Honestly, no one cares about proper grammar in this joint." Lucas put his hand up to stop Farkle and gave his friend a serious look.

"I'm serious, Farkle." Lucas replied. "If we do what Maya did to us then we'd be just as bad as she is."

"I guess...," Farkle pretended to relent although his face immediately turned stern. "Nope, I'm gonna do it. It's time someone got back at her for once." Farkle walked away as Lucas thought about what he was going to do. He wasn't going to be able to stop Farkle on his own. He was going to need some help...and he knew exactly where to go to.

* * *

Cory sat in his classroom as he started to prepare for the trek home, but he noticed Lucas entering the classroom with a concerned look on his face. Cory had to wonder what it was Lucas wanted, especially since the two of them currently weren't seeing eye to eye.

"Well, well, well..." Cory got up from his chair and walked over to Lucas, seeing he was raising an eyebrow. "If it isn't the boy that is dating my daughter. What have you possibly come here for? It's too early for marriage and you two cannot move to a romantic island together."

"I agree it's too early to think about marriage, sir." Lucas wasn't sure how to respond to Cory's craziness, but he did the best he could. "As for living on an island, sir...I think I'd miss you too much."

"Don't be a kiss-up." Cory immediately stated although Lucas remembered what he was here for.

"Mr. Matthews, there's something I wanted to talk to you about and it has to do with...everything." Lucas said. "For starters, I think you and I have been dancing around for far too long about how you feel considering the fact me and Riley are dating."

"Riley and _I._ " Cory corrected.

"Please Mr. Matthews, no one cares about proper grammar in this school." Lucas sighed before continuing. "The point I'm trying to make is...I love your daughter, and you never have to worry about me hurting her, because I cherish her far too much to do anything that would jeopardize our relationship and most importantly our friendship. I know that you're scared of letting her go since she's your daughter, but you have to trust me that she's in good hands. And I will do everything in my power to make sure that she's happy and treated like the princess that Riley is. Because the princess deserves the best..." Cory thought for a few moments before stuffing his hands in his pockets, wondering on how he should respond to Lucas's heartfelt confession.

"Wow, um..." Cory sounded speechless. "Lucas..." Lucas gave Cory an optimistic smile before Cory's face turned serious. "That was the biggest bunch of baloney I've ever heard. What do you think this is? A T.V. show?"

"I thought it was rather heartfelt. Anyway, can I get onto my next point?" Lucas wondered. "You're making me a little uncomfortable, Mr. Matthews?"

"I think that'd be a good idea." Cory replied.

"All right, the whole newspaper thing is turning into a disaster." Lucas said. "Maya wrote a column for the paper and it got a lot of buzz..."

"Yeah, I know." Cory nodded his head. "All of the papers were gone from my desk this morning. I had to go to the bathroom to make sure kids weren't just tossing them in the toilets with hopes of flooding the school."

"Well, the problem with the paper was Maya wrote some personal things about me, Riley and Farkle...and Farkle's really mad about it." Lucas said. "He's going to write his own column and say something personal about Maya, although we all know that he's just upset and is trying to get his revenge. Please, Mr. Matthews, I didn't know who else to come to so I came to you."

"Yeah, why _did_ you come to me?" Cory pondered, Lucas letting out a sigh.

"Because there's no one's opinion that I value more than yours, sir." Lucas honestly said. "And if there's anyone that can get Maya and Farkle back on the same page, it's you..."

"Wow...," Cory once again sounded speechless as Lucas appeared proud of himself. However, Cory raised an eyebrow and clapped his hands once. "Again with the biggest baloney I've ever heard. _But_...that baloney was touching and I will help Maya and Farkle." Lucas couldn't help but grin at Cory who grabbed his books and went to the room where they made the school newspapers. Lucas hesitated for a moment before following Cory, with hopes that their plan of getting Farkle and Maya back on the same page would work.

* * *

Maya stared down at her phone as she looked around the empty classroom, wondering why someone was trying to get her to come here. Her eyes darted over and noticed Farkle was entering as well, which resulted in the two of them giving each other glares. Maya and Farkle weren't exactly speaking at the moment and Farkle was far too angry to say anything to Maya's face.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Pinocchio." Maya snapped, causing Farkle to roll his eyes.

"If I could think of a comeback for that, I would...but I can't." Farkle went to his desk and sat down, pulling out his laptop and getting to work on his column. "I have important things to write about..."

"Let's hold off on the writing for one minute." Farkle and Maya turned around and saw Cory, Riley and Lucas entering, the three of them giving Maya and Farkle a smile. "Welcome, I'm glad you two could join us."

"I got a text message saying there was a meeting." Farkle motioned with his phone.

"Riley told me there were free donuts in here." Maya added. "Wait, so what's going on here?"

"I wanted to give the two of you a little bit of newspaper etiquette." Cory went to the board and wrote the word 'rumors', which caused Maya to glare at Farkle. "Newspapers can be wonderful things. They can provide information, they can keep us updated on our favorite topics and sometimes they can provide an escape from every day reality. That's why newspapers have something in it for everyone. For those that like the news, they have the headlines. For those that like sports, they have the sports section..."

"Let's go Mets!" Farkle raised his hands in the air.

"Ah, shaddup." Cory immediately silenced him before continuing. "And for those that like hearing about what other celebrities are doing, there's the entertainment section. Now, the thing with the entertainment section is there's a lot of stuff that people want to read about their favorite actors and singers...but how much of it is actually true? Sometimes, a celebrities life can be normal, like yours and mine, which means gossip columnists feel the need to stir the pot to cause havoc in a celebrities life. And causing havoc by using false information is called..."

"Rumors." Riley added. "Rumors don't just have to be about something completely fake. It could be something that a person wanted hidden, that the world shouldn't have found out about, but it was published anyway. Like me and tater tots...and Lucas getting left back a year." Maya gave them a solemn look before Riley continued. "Other things could be just speculation, but it makes the person extremely uncomfortable...like Farkle not being a human being." Farkle stared over at Riley with a nod of his head, causing her to fold her hands together. "Some things shouldn't be published for everyone else's entertainment. Because the person that it's about feels really bad about themselves, and then they don't know what to do." Maya turned around and once again stared at Farkle, noticing he was doing his best to keep his eyes off her. "So, we need you and Farkle to make up, Maya. It's not even about what you said about me and Lucas, because those things were true...but what you said about Farkle was a lie, and I can imagine that it hurts him. And Farkle, you have to know that writing a column about Maya for revenge isn't the answer. I understand you're hurt...but two wrongs don't make a right."

"I can't talk to him, Riley." Maya said. "He mentioned how my father walked out on my mother."

"Well you wrote lies about me." Farkle shot back, which caused Lucas and Riley to release a sigh.

"We knew it was going to get to this point." Lucas said as he motioned for Riley and Cory to leave the classroom.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Maya wondered, Riley closing the door and and locking it so Maya and Farkle couldn't get out. Maya tried to open the door but found it locked, her eyes immediately going to Riley and pointing to the door. "Riley, this is not funny. Open the door!"

"Not until you and Farkle work out your differences!" Riley shouted. "Our friendship should mean more than anything to you, and it should mean more than anything to Farkle too. And you two aren't going to leave here until you've both come to an understanding."

"As for us, we'll be getting some pizza." Cory waved as he, Riley and Lucas disappeared. Maya curled her hand into a ball and turned around towards Farkle, seeing he was staring at her and motioning for her to stay away.

"No, stay away from me Maya." Farkle backed away as Maya walked closer. "No...NO... _VIOLENCE NEVER SOLVED ANYTHING!"_ Farkle started running around the classroom as Maya chased him, with Farkle immediately climbing on the book case.

"Farkle, get down here so I can tear the stuffing out of you!" Maya shouted.

"For the last time, I am a _real boy!_ " Farkle yelled in return. "I do not have stuffing, I am not made of metal! I have organs, a heart and Farkle hair!" Farkle motioned to his hair while Maya noticed he was angry, causing her to slightly stare at him with a concerned look. "I get that I am a little too smart and my interests are different from what you, Riley and Lucas like...but I am real in every sense of the word. I have feelings...and right now my feelings are really hurt because you keep making jokes about how I'm not normal or something. It's not funny. In fact...it's downright mean." Maya stared at Farkle with a saddened look while motioning to help him down the book case. Farkle considered it before taking her hand and coming down from the book case, but he wasn't expecting Maya to punch in him the arm which caused him to let out a yell. "WHAT THE WHAT?!"

"Did that hurt?" Maya asked, Farkle nodding his head.

"Of course it hurt! I wouldn't be screaming if it didn't!" Farkle replied with Maya nodding her head.

"Good. Now you know how I feel when you mentioned how my dad left my mom!" Maya shouted, but Farkle noticed tears coming to her eyes. "Everyone else gets to have a mom and a dad. You, Riley, Bucky McBoing Boing...so why can't _I_ have one? Why can't I have someone who cares about me and offers me fatherly advice when I want it? Why can't I ever feel special like you guys? Why can't people like me?" Maya leaned against the book case as she sat down on the floor and cried, Farkle sitting next to her and gazing at her.

"I like you..." Farkle said which caused Maya to stare at him while wiping her tears. "Riley likes you. Lucas likes you. Riley's mom, her dad...her brother. Your mother loves you. You have a lot of people that love you, Maya. And you don't need another persons approval because of that. Being popular in school is a lot more headache than you think. You could have a lot of friends being popular...but when you really need help, who are your real friends going to be? Are they going to be sitting next to you, or are they going to go away and only come back when it's convenient for them?"

"I just thought..that if people read my stuff, and they liked it, then they would like me...and then High School wouldn't feel like such a scary place." Maya wiped her eyes with her sweater until Farkle went into his pocket and handed her a napkin, Maya taking it and wiping her eyes.

"High School is scary, and its' going to be scary for the next four years of our lives." Farkle admitted. "But you don't have to be scared alone. We're all just as scared, and whether we find our niche or not, at least we'll all be together, and nothing can break that bond." Maya nodded her head while Farkle gave her a solemn look. "I'm really sorry for mentioning your dad. I was angry when I said it, but Riley was right. Two wrongs won't fix anything. It's only going to make it worse." Maya blew her nose into the napkin while nodding her head.

"I'm sorry I wrote those things about you." Maya replied. "You're human all right. You're probably the best human there is because only Farkle's are as loyal as you are." Farkle ginned as he leaned his head on Maya's shoulder, the two of them giving a content grin. Lucas, Riley and Cory stared into the classroom from the window as Cory unlocked it, Riley and Lucas running over and seeing Maya and Farkle were smiling.

"So, I'm guessing our plan worked?" Lucas asked, Maya nodding her head and getting up from her seat.

"Yeah." Maya said. "Riley? Rick The Space Ranger." Lucas widened his eyes at Maya's new nickname for him, Riley doing her best to hold in her laughter.

"Wow, I've never been called that before..." Lucas pointed at her while Maya giggled slightly.

"Anyway, I'm sorry that I wrote those things about you." Maya apologized. "It wasn't right and I won't do something as dumb as choosing popularity over my friends. You guys have always been there for me..."

"And we always _will_ be there for you." Riley smiled, Maya hugging her friend tightly. Lucas turned to Cory and mouthed a thank you, with Cory giving Lucas a simple nod.

"Now...," Maya sighed before looking at everyone around her. "I think it would be in my best interest if I quit my post as a gossip columnist. I don't want people getting the wrong idea that I just gossip about my friends."

"You can still do other stuff in the school newspaper." Lucas motioned. "Like...maybe, you can talk about the real issues."

"Yeah, but like I said no one reads about the real issues Ranger Rick." Maya replied.

"Well...maybe you can write about things that are important to you." Farkle suggested. "If there's anything people want to read. It's a real story." Maya nodded her head and folded her hands together, turning towards her friends and giving them a sly smile.

"I think I know exactly what I want my column to be about." Maya sounded certain, which earned her smiles from Lucas, Riley and Farkle.

* * *

The next afternoon, Riley and Lucas sat in _Topanga's_ while drinking a smoothie and talking about one of Lucas's favorite topics; sports. It was nice for Lucas to have a conversation about a team that meant a lot to him, but it was more important to have it with his girlfirend. Riley put down her smoothie as Lucas had an arm wrapped around her shoulder, the two of them giving each other a determined glance while discussing the World Series.

"This is the first time in 15 years the World Series was played in New York, but it has nothing to do with the Yankees..." Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "All because Daniel Murphy went King-Kong on every other team they faced."

"He is actually a great second baseman, but everyone notices him now because he has been simply eating his _Wheaties_. And before you put up an argument that he's a so-so second basemen, .281 average, 14 home runs in 130 games." Riley responded as Lucas grinned and lightly pressed a kiss in Riley's hair.

"Gosh, I love you." Lucas adoringly stared at her until they heard the door open and Maya and Farkle entering the room with the school newspaper.

"You guys have to read Maya's new column." Farkle said, Maya and Farkle sitting on the couch and Riley taking the newspaper. "It's really amazing."

"Well, I did have help from a great editor." Maya playfully pushed Farkle's shoulder as he slightly blushed, but Riley cleared her throat and stared reading Maya's column.

" _As I walk the hallways of John Quincy High School, I see everyone in their respective cliques discussing their daily agenda. The basketball team is discussing how they're going to win their next basketball game with hopes of advancing to the State Championship. The Robotics Club is busy discussing how they're going to build the perfect robot to compete in Robot Wars. The cheerleaders are discussing how one of the top cheerleaders in the city broke a nail. And the Shakespearians are protesting their need to put on 'Romeo and Juliet' at school for the one-thousandth time. At one point they were me, they were walking the hallways trying to find their place in High School...in the world. I still haven't quite figured out where's my place in the world, but I have figured out my place in High School. I sit at a table with three of my best friends, the same three friends that have always been there for me. They've been in my corner for as long as I can remember, and even when I mess up, they still have my back. They're loyal, brave, strong, courageous and true...and for as long as I have them, I feel powerful...almost as if I can do anything I put my mind to. I hope everyone finds themselves friends that aren't afraid of being who they are and that have the biggest hearts I've ever seen. From one person to another, from one soul to another soul, from one 'Hart' to another 'Hart'...find yourself some true friends that will be there for you through good times and bad. You will surely never regret it."_ Riley finished reading the column before placing her head on Maya's shoulder. "That was beautiful, Maya."

"Yeah, that was really nice..." Lucas added, Farkle giving Maya a pat on her shoulder.

"How did you write something that was so inspiring?" Riley questioned, Maya simply pointing to her chest.

"I wrote something that came from the...'Hart'." Maya smiled at the use of her pun, and it earned her a hug from Riley, Farkle and Lucas. Maya was fortunate to always have these guys in her life, and she hoped they would always be there, for as long as she lived.


	6. 1x06: Girl Meets Talent Show

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maya signs up for the student talent show, with hopes of impressing Josh (Uriah Shelton) with her musical side. However, when Josh tells Maya she's too young for him, she begins to lose all hope when it comes to romance. Farkle's newest invention of 'Super Glue' goes awry when he accidentally glues himself to Lucas. Zay (Amir Mitchell Townes) decides to help Riley find her talent when she's certain she doesn't have one.

                                                                           

* * *

_**ACT 1** _

* * *

If there was one thing Maya was fortunate about, it was she was beginning to get into the swing of things regarding High School. Sure, there were still tests she had to study for and she still got into mischief every now and again during some of her classes, but she knew she was getting the hang of being a freshman. In fact, Maya wasn't stressing over how different High School was from middle school. She was enjoying her life right here, right now, especially since she got to share High School life with her friends. On that particular morning, Maya walked towards the atrium with her sketchbook in hand, making her way towards the art room when she spotted Lucas, Riley, Farkle and their friend Zay staring at a sheet of paper, and she had to wonder what it said that had them so intrigued.

"What up, weirdoes!" Maya waved, but she was surprised when Farkle shushed her, which caused her to raise an eyebrow and glance back at the sheet of paper. "Okay...why is Farkle shushing me? I don't like being shushed."

"The school's holding a talent show." Zay explained before his eyebrows creased. "And shush, woman. We're observing the paper in all it's glory." Lucas couldn't help but chuckle at his friends comedic attitude, but Maya was mudded. She didn't understand what had everyone fussing over a talent show sign-up sheet.

"What glory does a piece of paper have? It's just a piece of paper." Maya couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle, but Lucas stared at her with an incredulous look. Did Maya say something _wrong?_

"Maya? This here is not just a sheet of paper." Lucas huffed, causing Maya to become confused. "This allows the entire student body to show off our talents with the consequence of being ridiculed until we're seniors."

"And you're okay with that?" Maya still didn't understand, but Lucas simply nodded his head.

"Yeah, I'm okay with that." Lucas answered. Maya stared at the sheet of paper and thought for a moment, finally deciding that maybe joining the talent show would do her some good. Maybe she could show off a painting, or maybe even do some choreographed dance. Maya grabbed a pen and wrote her name on the sheet of paper, finally turning towards her friends and capping the pen with gusto.

"I'm in." Maya said. "How about you guys?" Lucas thought for a moment before he walked over and wrote on the sheet of paper, only for Zay and Farkle to join suit. "You guys are all signing up, but what are you going to showcase to the entire school?"

"I'm going to showcase the art of ballet." Zay answered, but it earned him looks from his friends. "What? You don't believe guys can do ballet? Tights can be very manly, you know."

"Dancing is overrated." Farkle waved his hand before his smile curled into a devilish smirk. "Science is where it's at. I'm going to debut an invention I've been working on for a long time. Farkle presents... _Crazy super glue_..."

"So you're going to invent something that's already been invented?" Lucas asked, but Farkle didn't seem pleased that Lucas was questioning him.

"This one will actually work, unlike every other bogus crazy glue on the market." Farkle pointed a finger at him, which caused Lucas to smirk. "You're judging what I'm doing. How about you tell us what you're doing for the school talent show?"

"I'm glad you asked." Lucas focused his attention on Maya as she raised an eyebrow, wondering what it was Lucas wanted. "I'm going to imitate Maya for the talent show. Consider this payback from when you embarrassed me in the eighth grade talent show."

"Okay, one...making fun of you was priceless and that was good comedy. You were the talk of eighth grade. Two, there is no way you can imitate me." Maya chuckled, but Lucas thought otherwise.

"You're not that hard." Lucas stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"All right. Come at me cowboy." Maya motioned for Lucas to do his worst, and it caused Lucas to slowly walk over to her and lean his forehead on hers. Maya simply gave him a smile as Lucas cleared his throat, mustering everything he had before he said...

" _HEE-HAW_!" Lucas's words caused Maya to raise an eyebrow, and it even caused Riley, Farkle and Zay to stare at one another with confusion.

"Lucas? What was that?" Maya asked, crossing her arms in the process.

"I was imitating you..." Lucas answered, but Maya didn't appear amused.

"It's not _hee-haw_ , Ranger Rick." Maya sighed before she put her hands on his cheeks and shook him. "It's _Hurr-HURR!_ " Maya eventually let Lucas go and rolled her eyes, going towards her phone and glancing down at the screen. "If you're gonna make fun of me, do it right."

'Yeah, I need to practice." Lucas revealed, Maya clearing her throat in the process.

"Oh, I need to go." Maya said while pointing to her phone. "There's a gallery meeting in five minutes. We're trying to decide what artwork we're going to put up in the cafeteria." Maya started to walk past Lucas, but she gave a devilish grin, taking a step back and once again glancing into his eyes. "Oh, Lucas...I'm going to give you some advice on how to act just like me."

"Really? How?" Lucas wondered, Maya tapping her fingers on her pant leg as she took a step towards him.

"Well, the first step you do is you lean close." Maya pulled Lucas close to her so they were staring in each other's eyes. "You pretend you're going to say something endearing...and then..." Lucas appeared as if he was studying Maya until she went...

" _HURR-HURR!_ " Maya shouting her signature catchphrase caused Lucas jump in fear, and he happened to jump right into Zay's arms. "Now _that's_ how you do it." Maya clapped her hands with glee before skipping to the art room, but Zay simply stared at Lucas while slowly putting his friend down.

"Dude, no girl is gonna think you're manly if you jump into someone's arms like that." Zay adjusted his collar. "It's not cool."

"Riley, you don't think any less of me, do you?" Lucas directed his attention to Riley, noticing she was shaking her head and giving him a small smile.

"Not at all." Riley replied, Lucas pointing a finger at Zay as if Riley furthered his point. Farkle stared back at the sign up sheet before his eyes met with Riley's, noticing she wasn't going towards the paper to sign it.

"Riley, aren't you going to sign up for the talent show?" Farkle wondered, Riley slowly shaking her head.

"No, I don't think I am." Riley responded, heading towards her locker so she could put some of her books away. Lucas, Zay and Farkle appeared surprised before they followed Riley to her locker, Lucas slowly closing her locker and giving her a softened look.

"And why aren't you joining the talent show?" Lucas pondered, Riley shrugging her shoulders as if she didn't really have an answer.

"I think my place would be on the sidelines, cheering all my friends on." Riley said. "Besides, I don't really have a talent that's worthy of showcasing."

"Bubbly girl who always sees the good in everyone but can't see the good in herself said what now?" Farkle said quickly which caused Riley to give a defeated smile.

"I don't have a talent that's good enough for the show." Riley shrugged her shoulders. "Not everyone has talent like you guys. I don't...and I've accepted that." Riley heard the bell ring before she gave the guys a rushed look. "I have to get to English. See you later." Riley gave Zay and Farkle a wave and Lucas a kiss on his cheek before she proceeded to her English class, but she left the three boys dumbfounded. What did Riley mean when she said she didn't have a talent? Everyone had a talent, and they didn't want Riley to sit on the sidelines while her talent was waiting to shine through.

"We need to find out what Riley's talent is." Lucas stuffed his hands in his pockets before facing Zay and Farkle. "I'm not gonna do the talent show if she's not gonna do it with us."

"You're right." Farkle added.

"I'm sure we can find the girl a talent." Zay said, which caused Lucas to smile at his friends. "I mean, she's a 14-year-old girl. How hard could it be?" Lucas nodded his head and followed Farkle and Zay to their History class, but in the back of Lucas's mind, he was hoping that he was able to convince Riley the talent show wouldn't be the same without her, and that she would make it more memorable experience if she had joined them.

* * *

                                                                

* * *

 

News that Riley wasn't going to do the school talent show spread like wildfire, and that meant once Maya got a hold of the news, she wasn't going to let Riley accept she was talentless without a fight. Currently the two girls were standing on the Bleecker Street Subway station after getting off the 6 train, Maya glancing at Riley as if she was slightly frustrated.

"Riley, I don't understand why you don't want to do the talent show." Maya shook her head. "You're saying that it's because you don't have a talent, but we all know that you do."

"Maya, I am extremely talentless." Riley said, although Maya was surprised she was hearing Riley talk like this. "I don't have any exciting talents like you do, or Lucas...or even Zay or Farkle. I can't compare and I'm not going to try. It just wouldn't be right to take away a spot that belongs to a more deserving person." Maya was perplexed by what Riley was saying, and she had to admit it was beginning to bother her. Riley decided to change the subject as she and Maya walked out of the station and made the way towards Riley's house. "So what talent are you going to show off to the student body?"

"Me?" Maya sounded confused that Riley had suddenly changed the subject, but she decided she was going to play along. "Um...maybe show a drawing or something."

"See, people would love to look at that." Riley said while the two of them entered the brownstone and made their way towards Riley's apartment. "You have such a way with watercolors and rainbows..."

"Riley, will you please explain to me what's wrong with you?" Maya questioned after they reached Riley's door. "You sound so...sad, and it's beginning to worry me."

"I'm not sad." Riley said although Maya felt that she wasn't as convincing. "I just think that maybe I need to start accepting who I am. And who I am...isn't someone with talent." Maya still didn't understand why Riley was acting odd, but she didn't get a chance to elaborate when Riley opened the door and they saw Riley's uncle Josh sitting on the couch in the living room. Maya stared at him for a moment which caused her smile to go wide and her hands to clap together, although Josh realized that Maya was on the verge of tackling him like she always did when she saw him.

"There's no fighting this, is there?" Josh asked Riley when he saw Maya beaming at him.

"Nope." Riley shook her head. "Just take it like a man."

" _UNCLE BOING!_ " Maya exclaimed before she ran towards him and jumped on him, Josh trying his hardest to get Maya off him.

"I'm not your uncle!" Josh reminded her before he placed her down on the floor.

"And boy am I lucky that's not the case." Maya grinned at him, but Josh decided to smile at her, hoping that if he was polite, Maya wouldn't freak out. "So Joshy McBoing Boing, what are you doing here for all places? Are you here to see colleges, your family...are you here to proclaim your underlying love for me?" Maya batted her eyelashes which caused Josh to clear his throat.

"Actually, no...um...I'm here because I needed Cory's help with an essay for my midterm." Josh said. "I mean, there's no one better at history than Cory, am I right?"

"Oh you are _so_ right..." Maya dreamily answered, but it caused Riley to walk over and grab her friend by the shoulders.

"Gee Maya, aren't you tired from all the talking you've been doing? We should probably go do our homework if we want to pass school." Riley asked, but Maya turned towards her, shaking her head with confusion.

"No, I'm not tired at all. And homework is boring." Maya said, but it simply caused Riley to motion for Maya to walk away before someone got hurt. Maya heard Josh's phone ring, which caused him to go into his pocket and stare at the phone number, and the fact someone called Josh had Maya stop in her tracks. "So who's texting you? A teacher? A friend? An ex girlfriend because you've madly fallen into the arms of someone else?" Riley slapped her forehead with her hand, but Josh decided to shake off what Maya was trying to imply.

"Actually, it was my band." Josh chuckled. "I'm supposed to meet them after I finish working on my essay so we can rehearse."

"Wait, you...you have a band?" Maya sounded impressed before she got out of Riley's grasp and made her way to Josh again. "That's really neat...and I'm not just saying that."

"Well yeah. And...I know." Josh nodded his head. "You see, we're working on something for the NYU Open Jam, and we're one of the bands everyone can't stop talking about. Especially after our impromptu show the beginning of the year that earned us rave reviews and a risk of expulsion."

"That's actually really funny that you mention that you're in a band." Maya smirked before leaning her hand on the couch. "I'm sort of in a band too." Riley stared at Maya as she wondered why Maya was making something up to impress Josh.

"Oh really?" Josh questioned, with Maya giving a smile.

"Oh yeah." Maya replied. "Actually...we're going to perform at the talent show that we're holding on Friday. And...if you're not busy, I'd really like you to come and see it..."

"Well...I think that I don't have any other plans." Josh said, Maya clapping her hands and Riley heading towards the bay window. Maya gave Josh a wink before she followed Riley but the smile Josh had on his face immediately fell. He wasn't sure if he actually _liked_ Maya the way she liked him. It mostly had to do with the whole age difference thing, but he also felt Maya didn't truly understand the complexity of relationships. He just didn't know how to voice his concerns without hurting her feelings.

* * *

Once Riley and Maya made their way to the bay window, Riley closed the door to her room, and gave Maya an incredulous look. Surely, Maya didn't have a band. And there was no way Zay, Lucas and Farkle were going to help her just so Maya could impress Josh.

"Maya, what are you thinking?" Riley asked while sitting down at the bay window. "You don't really have a band and you just said that so you could identify with Josh."

"Oh Riley, love makes you do crazy things." Maya waved her hand dismissively. "I thought you already knew that."

"I don't have to lie to Lucas in order for him to identify with me." Riley brought up. "Maya, I just don't want you to get in over your head. I think you love the _idea_ of you and Josh together. I don't think you really love Josh."

"I'm pretty sure I do love Josh." Maya answered. "I've been crushing on him since I was in the seventh grade."

"Yes, and while you're in the ninth grade, Josh is a freshman in college." Riley reminded her. "I just don't want you to get hurt because he thinks that you're too young for him. It's been a recurring theme for the last two years and I don't think that you're going to be as old as him anytime soon."

"I know he thinks I'm young." Maya got up from her seat. "But I thought of the perfect plan that is going to have Josh fall putty right into my hands. I'm going to use my music skills at the talent show, and when Josh sees my musical talent...we'll live happily ever after in a dorm in NYU." Riley wasn't sure if she was going to be able to snap Maya out of her fantasy land, but she simply decided against it, getting up from the bay window and sitting down on her bed. But she noticed that Farkle and Lucas were knocking on the bay window, which forced Maya to open it. "Hello there Farkle, Ranger Rick."

" _HEH-HEH!_ " Lucas tried to imitate Maya but she once again wasn't impressed. She shook her head and glanced at Farkle, pointing towards Lucas with slight annoyance.

"How long has this been going on for?" Maya questioned.

"He's been practicing for the last four hours." Farkle answered, although Maya stuffed her hands in her pockets. "Riley, it's a good thing you're here..."

"Where else would I be?" Riley asked, but before anyone had a chance to answer, the door to the room opened and in came Zay with a sandwich. Riley raised an eyebrow while Farkle and Lucas glanced at their friend with confusion. The only one that wasn't perplexed was Maya, and it was mostly because she was staring at the sandwich in Zay's hand.

"Wait, you guys just go through the window and you think it's okay?" Zay asked incredulously. "That's messed up." Zay took another bite of his sandwich before motioning to Riley, seeing that she was giving him a confused look. "By the way Riley, you're out of pastrami." Zay took another bite of his sandwich which cause Riley to glance back at Farkle and Lucas, wondering what it was they were here for.

"Guys, what's this about?" Riley became curious and that caused Lucas to walk over to her with a small smile.

"You think you have no talent that's worthy of the talent show." Lucas explained.

"That's right." Riley nodded her head at his statement.

"You're wrong." Lucas added, which forced Riley to cross her arms. "Riley, you're talented, you just need to embrace it. And we'd be willing to help you find a talent so you can be in the show with us." Riley couldn't help but give a small smile before she placed her hand on Lucas's cheek, seeing he was softly staring back at her.

"I love that you guys care about me so much that you want me to enter the talent show." Riley said before her face turned sad. "But all of my 'talents' are quirky and goofy and weird...it's something that people wouldn't want to see."

"Wait, who told you that your talents were quirky, goofy and weird?" Lucas wondered, seeing Riley was shrugging her shoulders.

"Everyone in school." Riley answered before removing her hand from Lucas's cheek and making her way towards the bay window. "You all have talents that you aren't ashamed of. I am. So I'd rather not share them with anyone else because I know someone at school will find someway to make my life miserable." Riley opened the bay window and hopped out, but everyone appeared shocked that Riley was the one that had left the room. A few seconds later, Riley popped her head back in, glancing at her friends with a confused look. "Wait a minute...this is _my_ house." Everyone nodded their heads towards her while Riley re-entered the bay window. But she was extremely upset with the fact that she wasn't able to express her feelings like everyone else. She wished she wasn't so self-conscious, but the truth is she was...and she absolutely _hated_ it.

* * *

"I don't get who would tell Riley that her talents are quirky, goofy and weird." Lucas said as he sat in Farkle's bedroom laboratory, Farkle putting together his invention for the talent show. "Riley is one of a kind, and that's what makes people want to fall in love with her. I know if Riley wasn't quirky or herself, I wouldn't be into her."

"Riley has an open mind, and that's great, especially for you...but some people aren't as open minded." Farkle answered, looking at the test tube that was there. "I wish I could help you cheer your girlfriend up but I'm more concerned about Maya at the moment..."

"You're concerned about _Maya?_ Why are you concerned about Maya out of all people?" Lucas became intrigued. "I don't get it."

"On the way down to Riley's bedroom, I heard her talking and she's planning on singing a song to Josh during the talent show." Farkle sounded a little jealous which Lucas picked up. "I mean, look at him. If I really didn't have a chance two years ago, I never really have a chance now."

"Farkle, trust me. Maya and Josh are never going to be a thing." Lucas gave a light chuckle. "For one thing, Josh is Riley's _uncle_ and if somewhere along the line Josh and Maya get married...Maya would be Riley's _aunt_ , and that'd be incredibly awkward for all of us."

"I can't let Josh and Maya fall putty into each others hands." Farkle said before he looked down at his invention. "Which is ironic because I'm making glue...which could stick two people together. Anyway, do you want to see my newest invention?"

"Is this the crazy super glue that you've been working on?" Lucas asked, Farkle showing the bottle to Lucas. "It looks like every other crazy glue that works in the store."

"But this one is guaranteed to work." Farkle reminded him. "Every other crazy glue wears off after a while. This one is guaranteed to never wear off."

"Gee, that sounds promising." Lucas smirked, although Farkle showed Lucas a broken doll house.

"Let me demonstrate." Farkle opened the serum and started dabbing a bit along the broken corners of the dollhouse before ultimately placing it back together with a smile. Lucas had to admit he was impressed, and it caused him to walk closer and observe the dollhouse. "Goes on quickly, and you'd never know that it was broken in the first place."

"Wow, Farkle." Lucas became amazed. "This is incredible. Up top." Lucas held his hand up for Farkle to high-five him, but when Farkle did, Lucas automatically realized that their hands were stuck together. "Oh...um...this is...funny. We're stuck together..."

"Yeah, it appears so." Farkle spoke as nonchalantly as he could while Lucas appeared nervous.

"Farkle, you...did create something that would _reverse_ the effects of the crazy glue, right?" Lucas wondered. Farkle winced slightly as he shook his head, and that caused Lucas to panic. " _WHAT?!_ "

"I didn't create one right now, but...I'm sure in the meantime I can create one." Farkle added, but Lucas wasn't having it.

"Farkle, we have to be at school tomorrow." Lucas sighed. "How are we going to go to school with our hands stuck together?"

"I don't know...making the serum is going to take a day at most." Farkle replied. "But in the meantime, we don't really have a choice buddy...we're stuck like this." Lucas let out a groan which caused Farkle to look back at the dollhouse. "But look on the bright side."

"What bright side?" Lucas questioned before Farkle motioned towards the dollhouse.

"At least my mom's dollhouse is fixed." Farkle said although it caused Lucas to glare at him. How on earth was Lucas going to explain to everyone why his hands were glued with Farkle's. Worst off...how was he going to explain it to Riley when she saw him at school tomorrow?

* * *

The next morning, Riley got out of bed and let out a yawn, scratching the top of her head before she heard a knock on her bedroom door. She had to wonder who that could have been, which caused her to open it with a confused look. There standing in front of her was Zay as he was all ready for school, and it caused Riley to become perplexed. Why was Zay here at 6:30 in the morning and why did he come when she wasn't ready for school yet?

"Zay, what are you doing here?" Riley yawned. "Don't you sleep? Wait... _how_ did you get in here."

"Your mom let me in." Zay replied. "She finds it odd that I don't go through your bay window like everyone else." Riley looked towards the bay window before Zay shook his head, deciding to get back on track as to what he was doing here. "Anyway, I thought a lot about what you told us yesterday and I decided that I want to help you find your talent for the talent show."

"Zay...that's sweet." Riley smiled softly before her face turned serious. "But I don't have a talent worth showcasing."

"And that's why I'm going to help you find it." Zay responded, although Riley seemed skeptical. "Look, you're always sticking your neck out for everybody. The least we can do as your friends is help you. You want to be in that talent show, right?" Riley considered Zay's question before she ultimately nodded her head.

"I want to be in the school talent show." Riley admitted. "I just don't want to be laughed at by everyone. Kids can be cruel and they're going to think that I'm weird, just because I don't do the things that every other kid does. Being goofy and silly causes kids to make fun of you."

"And that's what we're here for." Zay told her. 'We're gonna find you a talent...and if some kid messes with you after the show, I can't make any promises that Lucas is going to keep his temper." Riley chuckled softly at the last part before nodding her head.

"Okay, I'll let you guys help me find a talent." Riley relented. "Just let me get ready for school first."

"Awesome." Zay smiled before he cleared his throat. "Oh, by the way Riley..." Zay held up an empty box of cereal which caused Riley to widen her eyes. "You ran out of _Fruity Pebbles_." Riley incredulously stared at him before she smiled softly and went towards her closet to get her clothes. She was going to find her talent, and she was going to compete in the school talent show. She just hoped she didn't make a fool of herself on stage.

* * *

Maya rang the doorbell to Riley's apartment as she waited for Riley to open the door, but she heard something catch her attention when she saw Josh talking with someone in the hallway. It was a girl, and from the way she was acting around Josh, it seemed a little flirty. Josh never mentioned anything about a girl yesterday, and that's what piqued Maya's curiosity. Maya walked over towards them and cleared her throat, Josh turning towards Maya and widening his eyes.

"Maya, hey...um, what are you doing here?" Josh asked, which caused Maya to stuff her hands in her pockets.

"I was here to walk Riley to school, and...I see I found you here with a friend." Maya tried to let out a chuckle but instead it sounded forced. "So, who is she?"

"Oh, Maya this is Melissa...my girlfriend from NYU." Maya stared at Melissa as she held her hand out, but Maya didn't seem interested.

"You...you have a girlfriend." Maya said above a whisper before trying to process everything she was told. "You have a girlfriend and you didn't tell me. Why?"

"Maya, because you wouldn't understand." Josh replied, although Maya seemed taken aback. "Look, I'm not going to lie, the crush you have on me is really cute and I'm flattered that you like me. But..., you're too young to understand the concept of relationships...or even fall in love. You don't really know me, Maya. You just like the thought of possibly being with me." Maya gave a saddened face while Josh appeared apologetic, him turning towards Melissa and giving her a smile. 'We should get to class before the professor freaks."

"Yeah, it was nice meeting you Maya." Melissa waved as she and Josh headed towards the stairs hand in hand, only to leave Maya in the dust. Maya stuffed her hands in her pockets before she noticed the door opened and Riley was staring at her, almost confused as to what her friend was doing there all by herself.

"Hey Maya, aren't you going to come inside for breakfast?" Riley asked. "Oh, but you can't have _Fruity Pebbles_. Zay ate the last of it." Maya continued staring out into space and that was when Riley knew something was wrong. "Maya? Is everything okay?" Maya turned towards Riley and shook her head, slowly walking in her direction and feeling tears well up in her eyes.

"Well, you'll be happy to know that Josh has a girlfriend." Maya said, which caused Riley to raise an eyebrow. "Her name is _Melissa_..., and...Josh thinks that I'm too young to understand the concept of relationships."

"Oh Maya..." Riley softly said before hugging her friend. "I know it's hard right now, but you'll understand that Josh is only trying to protect you..."

"I don't need protection." Maya strongly said. "I need him to understand that three years isn't that much of a difference. Yes, he's a freshman in college, and I'm a freshman in High School...but it doesn't mean that I don't understand the world like he does. I'm going to show him that I'm not too young to understand the concept of love."

"And how are you going to do that?" Riley asked with Maya going towards the door.

"I'm going to use the talent show as a way to get Josh to see that I'm not a little kid anymore." Maya declared. "I'm going to write a song for the talent show and I'm going to sing it to him."

"You're going to sing Josh a song?" Riley innocently blinked. "What if he brings his girlfriend to the talent show since he said he was already going?"

"I don't care if he brings her." Maya scoffed. "I need to get my feelings out in the open, and since talking to Josh doesn't help...maybe singing to him will." Maya entered the house and closed the door, leaving Riley in the middle of the hallway while in thought. She was afraid that Maya was getting herself into some uncharity territory and she didn't want Maya to get hurt. Riley slowly walked towards the door and knocked on it, but her eyes widened with realization as she stared at the apartment number.

"Wait a minute..." Riley said before she furrowed her eyebrows. "This is _my_ house!" Riley banged on the door hoping that someone inside would let her in. But she also wondered how a simple talent show was able to create all of this chaos.

* * *

_**END ACT 1** _

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

Maya decided to put her plan in impressing Josh into action, and that meant her writing down all of her feelings about the conversation that morning into her notebook. Even if it came at the expense of her not listening to Cory's lecture about Thomas Edison inventing the lightbulb. Maya continued to doodle in her notebook while Riley and Zay sat in their respective seats, trying to listen to Cory's lecture. But there was something off about class. For one thing, Lucas and Farkle weren't here...and it wasn't like Lucas to not say he wasn't going to show up for history.

"All right, so I thought of a list of potential talents that you can do for the talent show." Zay showed Riley the notebook as she grabbed it, staring at it and giving a small smile. However her smile diminished when she realized some of the things on Zay's list were a little farfetched.

"I don't know how to ride a bull." Riley pointed to one of the things on the list as Zay nodded his head.

"The list is a work in progress, but the good news is everything else is teachable." Zay responded, although Cory stopped his lecture when he realized Zay and Riley were talking in class.

"Riley?" Cory said which caused Riley to stare at her father. "I'm sure you and Zay are having a great conversation about bunnies, Heffalumps and Woozles but I'm teaching class, sweetheart."

"Mr. Matthews...with all due respect...we're trying to find your talentless kid a talent for the talent show." Zay told Cory which caused Riley to slink in her seat and cover her eyes with her hands.

"Oh you're talking about the talent show that the school's hosting." Cory understood what the conversation was about before he smiled at a memory he had. "I remember when my sister had her talent show and I completely embarrassed myself by singing _Wind Beneath My Wings_ along with her to my dad...it was awkward..."

"On a scale of one to ten, how awkward was it?" Zay asked, which caused Cory to smirk.

"Point is, I completely embarrassed myself in front of middle school kids." Cory said. "Last thing I'd want is for anyone to embarrass themselves on stage." Maya looked up at Cory and shrugged her shoulders, simply going back towards her sheet of paper and jotting down more notes. "I mean, they'd be the talk of the school for like the next century."

"Dad, you're making me not want to do the talent show." Riley said above a whisper, but Cory patted his daughter's head before turning towards the blackboard.

"Gee, that sounds like music to my ears." Cory winked at his daughter before the door opened, but everyone glanced at the people at the entrance while their jaws dropped. Maya perked her head up when she noticed Farkle and Lucas were standing in the doorway, and the worst part was their hands were glued together. Maya let out a laugh while Riley appeared perplexed, but Lucas simply glared at Farkle as if he was telling him that them coming to class together was a terrible idea.

"Oh my gosh, I have so many jokes going through my mind right now." Maya chortled as she capped her pen. "Where should I start?"

"Please, stop right there before you say anything else." Lucas pointed a finger at Maya, seeing she was shrugging her shoulders and glancing back her paper. "Farkle crazy glued our hands together so we're stuck like this."

"I told him I was working on a serum that will remove our hands, but he has to be patient." Farkle instructed, although Lucas didn't seem too happy with Farkle's answer.

"So far all that's been asked today was when did I dump Riley." Lucas smirked. "I'm guessing you know where they went with that after they asked."

"Well..., I can...sort of see why." Cory couldn't help but laugh when he noticed Farkle and Lucas's hands glued together but Lucas directed his attention to Riley, seeing that she was fiddling with her pencil while trying to avoid his gaze.

"Riley, you don't think any less of me, do you?" Lucas asked, but Riley clicked her tongue and went back to writing. Lucas raised an eyebrow before turning to Farkle, moving their glued hands which caused Farkle to appear surprised. "You better do something about this or else."

"I'm working on it." Farkle answered, him motioning for Lucas to take a seat. "Come on."

"Mr. Matthews?" Lucas stared at Cory who was nodding his head. "I'm going to need someone to write my notes. Farkle glued my dominant hand." Riley stared at Farkle as he appeared sheepish, but Riley's face was a little concerned.

"Farkle, you are going to find a way to unglue Lucas's hand from yours, right?" Riley questioned.

"I will try..." Farkle answered, but he didn't expect Riley to grab him by his collar and pull him close.

"You don't try..." Riley said in a threatening tone. "You _do_." Farkle knew Riley was something that shouldn't have been messed with, and it caused him to nod his head.

"Yes ma'am." Farkle replied, Riley promptly letting him go and staring back at her father. Cory stared at Maya who was jotting something down on a sheet of paper, and he was almost afraid to ask what it was.

"Should I even bother?" Cory wondered, Maya looking up at him from his question.

"I'm writing a song that will crush Josh's current happiness, make his girlfriend leave him and have him crawl into my arms." Maya simply stated before going back towards her paper. Cory let out an exasperated sigh before going back to the board, wondering what was wrong with his class.

"I'm surprised I haven't flown over the cuckoos nest yet." Cory muttered before writing something on the board, but Maya was determined to let Josh know how she felt. She was determined for Josh to see that they were potentially the perfect match, but she knew that it was going to take some convincing.

* * *

That afternoon, Riley sat in an empty classroom while Zay looked through his checklist, the two of them determined to find Riley a talent so she could compete in the talent show. Riley hoped that she really did have a talent, because she didn't want to be the only one of her friends simply sitting on the sidelines.

"All right, I have a list of things that we're going to try when it comes to finding you a talent." Zay told her while Riley quickly nodded her head. "Okay, we're going to try...oh, here's something. Let's try dancing. I'm sure you'd be great at that."

"Okay, I think I can be good at dancing." Riley shook off her nerves before she started to gallop across the room, with Zay wondering why she was dancing so...awkward. It was obvious that dancing wasn't one of Riley's many talents. It became more clear when Riley continued dancing towards him and ended up stepping on Zay's foot. Zay's eyes widened and he started hopping on one foot as a way to get the pain to subside, but Riley immediately stopped her version of dancing and gave Zay a warm smile. "Oh look, you're dancing too!"

"This isn't dancing...!" Zay continued hopping up and down while Riley appeared surprised. "This is me in pain! Oh...my leg!" Zay continued hopping up and down while Riley felt dejected. Maybe dancing wasn't the way to go for the talent show. After the pain subsided, Zay released a sigh, staring over at Riley and deciding maybe there was something _else_ Riley was good at. "All right, I've got another idea on what you can do for the talent show...since dancing is totally out." Riley continued staring at him as Zay led Riley to the gymnasium. "For our next test...I was thinking maybe we could try archery."

"Why archery?" Riley asked, noticing Zay was placing rubber arrows in her hand.

"Because everyone else is going to be singing or acting or something, and I don't want you to be too predictable." Zay patted Riley's back before going towards the target, pointing towards it while Riley cleared her throat. "All right, try to aim the arrows towards the targets. That should be easy, right?" Riley nodded her head as she aimed towards the targets, but she realized all of the targets missed...and she pinned Zay to the wall of the gym with her target practice. Riley covered her mouth with her hands as Zay let out a sigh, but it was clear that Riley was feeling dejected. "Well, let's look on the bright side..." Zay glanced at his surroundings before he stared at Riley. "At least I'm alive." Riley sighed and put down the arrows she had in her hand, but Zay realized that Riley was leaving the gym, which was the last thing he wanted. "Wait, where are you going?"

"Zay, I appreciate you helping me, I do." Riley turned towards him as Zay stuffed his hands in his pockets. "But, let's just face it. I don't have a normal talent...I may not even have a talent. At the end of the day I'm just... _Riley_." Riley turned around and left the gym, but Zay gave a small sigh as he realized Riley was feeling worse than before. He wished that Riley could see that she was special, but she absolutely didn't feel it, and that's the part that made Zay worry.

* * *

Topanga stood in front of the kitchen stove while stirring the pot with the supper in it, but she was anticipating her husband's arrival from school so they could talk about their day like a family. It had been so long since they all had dinner together, and Topanga thought a home cooked meal would have been the perfect thing. Cory entered the house and immediately pointed a finger at her, Topanga turning around and giving him an inquisitive look.

" _You_!" Cory continued pointing a finger at his wife before Topanga gave a small smile.

"All right, I'll start." Topanga cleared her throat before smirking. "I had a wonderful day, honey. How about you?" Cory realized that Topanga wanted him to vent on his feelings, but there were other pressing matters at hand.

"I don't know how you're involved...but our daughter isn't joining a talent show!" Cory sounded almost delirious which caused Topanga to simply chuckle.

"Oh Cory, is this about you embarrassing yourself at Morgan's talent show because you were trying to get your dad to forgive you?" Topanga wondered, but Cory appeared perplexed. How did Topanga know about that. "Your mom told me while we were talking on the phone. By the way, she has a lot of stories about you and Eric, and it's perfect leverage for when you both push my buttons."

"Great, now I have to add 'call my mother' to the list of things I have to do." Cory rolled his eyes before he became serious. "Topanga, why is our daughter trying out for the talent show?"

"Why shouldn't she?" Topanga countered. "Cory, Riley is not going to make a fool of herself like you did at a middle school talent show. She may be goofy like you but she's not that goofy. And why don't you want her to expand her horizons and get out of her comfort zone? I thought this would have been something you wanted for her." Cory thought for a moment before sitting on the stool, folding his hands together and releasing a sigh.

"I just don't want the kids to make fun of her because they don't completely understand her." Cory answered. "She's unique and goofy and talented and her immediate circle can see that...but there are some cruel kids out there and they will try to crush her spirit. I just don't want her to go through something like that while in High School. I know how much it would crush her if she was the end of everyone's jokes all year." Topanga understood where Cory was coming from and it caused her to sit down and stare at him.

"Cory, we can't protect Riley forever." Topanga softly told him. "There are going to be people that will be jealous of her and they're going to try to put her down. But she's going to have friends that will take care of her when she needs it. And when she needs us...she'll let us know." Topanga's words slightly eased Cory and it caused him to give his wife a smile.

"I married a good one, didn't I?" Cory smiled as Topanga rubbed his hand with her own.

"Yeah, you did." Topanga chuckled before getting up from her chair. "But us being together was inevitable."

"Oh really? And why is that?" Cory wondered, Topanga going over to sit on his lap in the process.

"Because there's only one 'Cory and Topanga'...and luckily that gets to be us." Topanga smiled before giving him a kiss on his cheek, Cory smiling back and staring at his wife with adornment. The door to the house opened and they saw Riley put her bag on the floor, but she didn't look like she wanted to talk to someone. It looked like she wanted to be alone. Riley walked past her parents and entered her bedroom, closing the door and leaving her parents in the living room. "I know exactly who's going to fix this." Topanga got up from his lap as Cory appeared hopeful.

"Please tell me that you're thinking of Maya?" Cory questioned. "Because Maya thinks of everything..."

"No, not Maya." Topanga shook her head.

"Oh, so you mean us?" Cory motioned with his fingers to the both of them.

"No, not us either." Topanga smirked before Cory scowled at the person that came to mind.

"Oh...not _him_..." Cory seethed, but Topanga pointed a finger at her husband, going towards the phone and typing in a few numbers.

"Exactly that person." Topanga said, holding the telephone to her ear while Cory pouted. Topanga knew that this plan was going to work. If there was anyone Riley was going to listen to...it was Lucas.

* * *

Lucas wasn't sure how he had gotten through the school day, but he did know that being stuck to Farkle was a trial in itself. All day he had gotten looks from everyone in school, and he was forced to work on his science project with Farkle, but he thought the worst part of this was he was stuck to Farkle with almost no way out. Lucas let out a low grumble as he sat in the Chemistry room, noticing Farkle was busy trying to put together a serum to get rid of the crazy glue.

"Is this gonna take too long or...?" Lucas sighed, but Farkle turned around and pointed a finger at him.

"You can't rush true genius." Farkle responded.

"True genius is what got us into this mess." Lucas sighed, rolling his eyes and tapping his fingers to his chin. "Look, as much fun as it was being made fun of for being attached to you all day, I would rather just get this over with so we can go on with our lives."

"I don't get why people were making fun of us." Farkle said, but Lucas stared at his glued hand that was attached to Farkle's, noticing that Farkle was glancing back at him with confusion.

"Gee, I wonder why." Lucas motioned towards his hand. "Maybe because we're glued to each other?"

"I've been in worse scrapes." Farkle nonchalantly replied, but Lucas was surprised that Farkle wasn't surprised by all this. They were stuck together. Which was something everyone would remember at least for the rest of Freshman Year.

"So being stuck together with me doesn't bother you?" Lucas pondered, but all Farkle did was shake his head.

"Nope, because if I was going to get stuck to anyone, I'm glad it was you." Farkle answered, and the response caused Lucas to soften his face. "I mean, let's face it. No one would even look at me or give me the time of day...but being attached to you...I kind of felt important, even if it was for one day." Lucas stared at Farkle with a saddened look before getting up from his chair.

"Farkle, you are important." Lucas said, which caused Farkle to innocently blink at him. "If we're being honest, I think that you're the coolest person I know." Farkle stared at him while Lucas stuffed his hand in his pocket, but Farkle was still a little confused. "No one can make all these science experiments like you can...and I have to admit, it's really awesome." Farkle couldn't help but smile softly but Lucas gave him a pat on his shoulder. "If it helps, I would _love_ to see more of your work..."

"Wow, you really would?" Farkle sounded surprised, but Lucas nodded his head slowly.

"Yeah, I would." Lucas responded. Farkle gave Lucas a pat on his shoulder, the two of them smiling at each other.

"Thanks Lucas." Farkle said above a whisper. The two of them heard a ding as Farkle turned around, Lucas noticing Farkle had finished making the serum...in an _Easy Bake Oven_. Farkle caught Lucas's confusion and gave his friend a smile. "What? It's not just for baking brownies anymore." Lucas chuckled as Farkle went and grabbed the tray, Lucas glancing at the serum that was in a tiny bottle. "All right, here goes nothing..."

"Wait," Lucas put his hand up which forced Farkle to stare at him. "Have you ever tried this on anyone before?"

"Nope." Farkle shook his head. "So I'm not responsible if you turn into a mutant or something..." Farkle dabbed a bit of the serum on his and Lucas's hands, Lucas glancing down as he noticed that their hands became unstuck. Lucas grinned as Farkle bowed his head, but he noticed Lucas started clapping his hands with gusto. "Thank you, I am Farkle!"

"Wow! That was really great, Farkle." Lucas chuckled. "You really do have a talent for all this science stuff."

"You really think so?" Farkle asked, but it only prompted Lucas to put an arm around Farkle's shoulder.

"I know so." Lucas declared. Farkle and Lucas smiled before they saw Zay come into the Chemistry lab, him pointing at Lucas with a slightly concerned look.

"Dude, I tried and I tried and I tried some more!" Zay said which caused Lucas to give him a muddled look. "I couldn't find a talent for Riley. And she went home and she..., she's really upset man. This is the most upset i've ever seen her." Lucas's face turned serious as he thought for a minute, eventually leaving Zay and Farkle in the lab as he ran out the door. Zay and Farkle stared at each other before Zay noticed Farkle's serum, Zay slowly moving towards it so he could touch it.

"If you want to live, you'll move your hand away." Farkle responded, which caused Zay to pull his hand back and gaze curiously at the serum. In the back of Farkle's mind, he hoped Lucas was able to get through to Riley that she was talented. Everyone had _something_ they were good at.

* * *

Maya sat on the steps in the atrium as she continued jotting down her feelings on a sheet of paper, but every time she tried to find the words, it wouldn't come out right. She finally crumpled the piece of paper and tossed it to the side in frustration, but little did she know, Farkle had walked up from the science lab, and saw Maya sitting there by herself. Maya folded her hands together as she looked away, but Farkle had a gut feeling that he should talk to her. He walked up to the steps and sat down, noticing that Maya was glancing back at him, wondering what it was he could have wanted.

"I see your song has you frustrated." Farkle folded his hands together.

"I see you're not holding hands with Lucas anymore." Maya replied, which caused Farkle to give a light chuckle.

"Yeah, that probably wasn't the highlight of my day." Farkle gave a soft smile before moving closer to Maya. "So what's going on with you? You're not exactly like yourself."

"What do you mean by that?" Maya asked as Farkle shrugged his shoulders.

"I just mean...," Farkle sighed before noticing the sheet of paper Maya had in front of her. "Well, you're obsessing over something that you shouldn't really be obsessing about."

"Is this supposed to be about Josh and how I'm writing a song for him?" Maya asked, Farkle nodding his head slowly.

"He has a girlfriend, Maya." Farkle replied, which caused Maya to innocently blink at him. "A girlfriend that he really likes, and I don't think it'd be fair that you're projecting your feelings on him even though he clearly doesn't feel the same way about you."

"So you're saying Josh doesn't like me?" Maya questioned, which caused Farkle to nod his head slowly.

"I don't think Josh likes you like that." Farkle clarified. "He's not looking into having a romantic relationship with you. I think he's more interested in having a girlfriend that isn't the best friend of his niece."

"I wish everyone would stop saying that." Maya huffed. "It's not that hard to believe that Josh and I could be a thing..."

"You'd be Riley's aunt and that'd make everything _extremely_ weird." Farkle shuddered before he became serious. "But honestly, Maya..., you can't really expect you and Josh to actually work out, can you? I mean...you even thinking about the possibility of dating Josh might cause some tension and nerves among the group should you two ever break up. I mean, you'd put Riley in a tough position. Having to choose between her friends and family. Not only that, but you'd put yourself in a terrible position. I don't think you dating Josh would be smart for either of you...and while you're chasing Josh, there could be someone out there that likes you for who you really are." Maya thought about Farkle's words, but she ultimately shook her head.

"Really? Like anyone would really like _me?_ " Maya let out a huff.

"I don't know..." Farkle gave her a softened look which caused Maya to glance at him. "That person could be closer than you think..." Farkle got up from the steps and stared at Maya, seeing she was looking down at the sheet of paper on the floor. "I just know that if you keep chasing after one fish...you're going to miss others that want to be caught by your fishing rod." Farkle walked away from Maya and left her alone in her thoughts. Maya wasn't sure what Farkle had meant when he said there were other fish in the sea. Surely, no one would ever be interested in her...

* * *

Riley sat at her bay window that evening as she glanced towards her bed. She and Zay weren't able to find her talent and it left Riley in a state of wonder, if she would ever _really_ find her talent. She wasn't like other kids who could get on stage and show off their talent to the world. She just had to accept that there wasn't a true talent for her and that she would forever be talentless. She heard a knock on the bay window which caused her to turn around, noticing Lucas was there with a smile. Riley opened the bay window and saw Lucas entering, Riley stuffing her hands in her pockets and giving her boyfriend a teasing smile.

"So I see you're done being Farkle's boyfriend." Riley jested which caused Lucas to give her a grin.

"Believe me, it was quite romantic. But we ultimately decided that we were going to stay friends." Lucas teased in return before he gave her a solemn look. "As much as I would love to talk about what happened between me and Farkle, I'm more concerned about what's going on with you." Riley's smile lessened while Lucas leaned back in his chair, Riley glancing at him with worry. "So what happened with you? I heard you tried every different talent in the book and then gave up. That's not the Riley I know."

"The Riley you know is goofy and silly and she doesn't have a real talent." Riley got up from her position and crossed her arms. "I really wanted to be in the talent show, but I guess I don't have a talent that's good enough to showcase. Everyone has something their proud of showing and me...I have nothing. _I'm_...nothing." Lucas got up from the bay window and followed her, stuffing his hands in his pockets and giving her a shocked look.

"Riley, don't you _ever_ say that you're nothing." Riley turned to him and noticed the serious look on his face. "You're exceptionally talented, Riley...there's no one in the world like you." Lucas told her. "Just because you're not good at the things other kids are good at, doesn't mean you don't have a talent. You're gifted...and you're going to show everyone just how gifted you are..."

"But what talent could I possibly have that I could show everyone...?" Riley questioned which caused Lucas to stare at her table. He noticed a few of her textbooks, but there was one book that had Lucas interested. He walked over and picked up a pink frilly book, one that caused Riley to raise her eyebrow.

"What's this?" Lucas asked before staring into her notebook, Riley feeling her cheeks turn a bright red.

"Oh, um that's my poetry book." Riley gave a soft chuckle. "There's nothing really important in there. Just some stuff that I dabble in..." Lucas looked down at the poetry book and read a few of the poems on the first page, his eyes widening and his smile growing. "What?"

"Riley? Why didn't you tell me that you write poetry?" Lucas questioned, causing Riley to raise her eyebrow. "This is incredible. And it's _really_ good."

"No one is going to want me to read poetry for a talent show, Lucas." Riley started to take the book back, but she noticed that he was leaning close to her face and giving her a smirk.

"I think people _would_ want to read this." Lucas responded, opening the page and pointing to one. "You have to read one of these for the talent show."

"I don't know..." Riley sounded shy before Lucas raised an eyebrow towards her.

"Riley..." Lucas's tone was soothing and it immediately caused Riley to relax. "These poems are really good...you just need to believe in yourself. Like the way I believe in you..." Riley smiled softly as she hugged Lucas, Lucas hugging her back and squeezing her tightly. Riley eventually parted the hug and glanced down at the notebook, realizing that she may have found her talent. It wasn't as flashy as Maya's or Farkle's or even Zay's...but it was _her_ talent, and it was one she was going to embrace. And she _did_ have a poem she was working on in class the other day that she felt the need to share...

* * *

Maya stood backstage of the talent show the next evening as she held her guitar close to her. What she didn't notice was Farkle behind her, and he was doing everything he could to keep his eyes on her. He walked up to her and tapped her on the shoulder, Maya turning around and giving him a small smile.

"So you're going to go out there and showcase your song to Josh, huh?" Farkle tried not to sound jealous, but Maya nodded her head, holding the guitar close to her.

"Yep, that's what I'm doing." Maya said. "Farkle, I appreciate what you told me the other day. About there being a bunch of fishes that are interested in me...but the truth of the matter is, there's no one that would like me for who I am. I'm broken...and I need to be with someone that has that security I'm looking for."

"And you think Josh is going to give you that security?" Farkle questioned, Maya nodding her head.

"Yeah." Maya said. "He's part of Riley's family...and Riley's family makes me feel safe. I don't know if I could ever find a place that would give me that other than her family." Farkle seemed disappointed, but he immediately shook it off, nodding his head and clapping his hands together.

"Well, good luck out there." Farkle said while giving a small smile before he made his way with the other science members. Maya wondered why Farkle was a little upset with the fact that she wanted to sing the song anyway, but she decided to shrug it off when she noticed Zay was standing in the middle of the stage, waving to the audience.

"Ladies and gentlemen. And now I present to you...a dance. But don't judge..." Zay pointed his finger to everyone before the music started to play. Zay gracefully danced around the room while Cory, Riley and Lucas were glancing from their seats in the audience.

"I didn't know he was that good." Cory said as Lucas shrugged his shoulders.

"They said he was the best there was when it came to ballet back in Texas." Lucas nonchalantly answered. After Zay finished his dance, everyone clapped their hands and Zay bowed for the audience, before finally making his way to the side of the auditorium. As he passed by Maya, he noticed that she was glancing at him, and Zay cleared his throat in a manly-like manner.

"Like I said...no judging." Zay told her before walking past. Cory made his way on the stage and clapped his hands together, hoping to introduce the next act.

"Thank you Zay for your fancy footwork." Cory motioned towards the side of the stage before looking down at his cue card. "Next, we have a talented freshman who wrote her own song. Let's hope it's good! Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Maya Hart." Maya walked to the stage as everyone clapped their hands, but Maya held onto her guitar with a softened expression. She stared at everyone in the audience, and finally landed her eyes on Josh who was sitting behind Riley.

"I've heard the phrase that being 14 is a young age to fall in love. In fact, some people question if 14 year olds even know what love is and when older people hear that we're head over heels for someone, they think we're just 'too young' to understand. I wrote this song to prove to everyone that I'm not too young to understand love...and, my heart knows what it wants. So...here's my song and I hope you like it." Maya said before she started strumming the guitar, noticing that everyone was captivated by her.

 _[Maya]_  
Big lights  
People  
Rushing to grow up before you know  
Stop signs  
Denied  
Everyone tells me I gotta go slow

 _And it's gonna hurt sometimes_  
No matter what you do  
But nothing can change my mind

 _If I'm too young to fall in love_  
Why do you keep running through my brain  
And if I'm too young to know anything  
Then why do I know that I'm just not the same  
Don't tell me I won't Don't tell me I can't feel  
What I'm feeling is real  
Cause I'm not too young

 _Raindrops_  
Deep thoughts  
Pictures of you and me wherever I go  
Laughing  
Running  
To a place where nobody says no

 _And it's gonna hurt sometimes_  
No matter what you do  
But I gotta fall to fly, yeah

 _If I'm too young to fall in love_  
Why do you keep running through my brain  
And if I'm too young to know anything  
Then why do I know that I'm just not the same  
Don't tell me I won't  
Don't tell me I can't feel  
What I'm feeling is real  
Cause I'm not too young

_Cause I'm not too young, no  
Ye-e-ah_

_If I'm too young to fall in love_  
Why do you keep running through my brain  
And if I'm too young to know anything  
Then why do I know that I'm just not the same  
Don't tell me I won't  
Don't tell me I can't feel  
What I'm feeling is real  
Cause I'm not too young

_Cause I'm not too young, no  
Cause I'm not too young_

After Maya's song, everyone stood up and applauded her, but Maya was hoping for only one person's confirmation; Josh's. Josh stared at her as if he was studying her, before he ultimately clapped his hands. Maya walked backstage and noticed Farkle staring at her, seeing he was meekly glancing at her before turning his attention back to the science kids in his club. Cory walked to the front of the stage and held his cue card, giving the audience what he thought was a genuine smile.

"All right, that was the great Maya Hart everyone!" Cory exclaimed, everyone cheering while Cory stared at the card in his hand. "Next up..." Cory paused for a moment before he grinned softly, keeping his eyes on the cue card and his heart fluttering with pride. "A poem...by Riley Matthews." Everyone clapped their hands while Riley got on the stage with her pink notebook, her eyes glancing at her fellow classmates before she cleared her throat and opened the book.

"This was a poem that I wrote in class yesterday..." Riley said, staring over at Lucas who was giving her a thumbs up. "And, I wanted to share with you all what really goes through my mind every single day..."

" _I am a girl_  
Who has strived and endured  
The good times and bad times  
With no sight of a cure

 _I am a girl_  
Who walks through the halls  
Hoping no one will notice  
When I stumble and fall

 _I am a girl_  
Who picks herself up  
Even when the world says,  
"Enough is enough"

 _I am a girl_  
Who mimics a clown  
I smile everyday  
So no one sees my frown

 _I am a girl_  
Who has seen struggle and pain  
Sometimes I see sunshine  
Sometimes I see rain

 _But that's how life is_  
Life spins and it swirls  
I wish it were differentt  
But girl...meet world."

Riley's poem caused everyone to stare at her with slight confusion. Even Lucas was a little surprised that Riley wrote something that wasn't her bubbly self. In the end, he simply clapped and everyone joined suit, with Riley bowing and heading towards the side of the auditorium with a smile on her face. Cory gave a small smile before he moved onto the next contestant...but he didn't notice someone was jotting something down in the audience about Riley and her poem.

* * *

After the show was long over, Maya looked around the atrium and sat down, holding the guitar close to her and thinking that she had sung a song from the heart. She hoped she had inspired someone, she even hoped Josh got the message. It was then that she noticed Josh was walking towards her, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Wow Maya..." Josh cleared his throat while Maya glanced at him, the two of them glancing at each other with a softened look. "That song was...incredible. I didn't know you had it in you to write something like that." Maya nodded her head slowly and gave him a soft chuckle, wondering if he thought the song was really all that special.

"I wrote it for you, you know." Maya admitted, Josh nodding his head and sitting down on the steps.

"I know you did." Josh answered but Maya stared at him with confusion. "But...Maya I think you and I need to set the record straight here."

"Okay, like what?" Maya asked, Josh giving her a softened look.

"You and me...it's never going to happen." Josh told her with softness in his voice. "We're just on two different planets. I mean...we're three years apart in age, Maya...that means something in the real world. And I have to be honest with you, I like you...but I don't like you in _that_ way." Maya appeared dejected as Josh got up from the stairs. "Your song was great and I do believe that you can fall in love...but you're not in love with me."

"Says who?" Maya stood up from the steps as Josh shook his head. "I can be in love with you..."

"But the truth of the matter is...you're _not_ Maya." Josh sighed. "You never were in love with me. You were in love with the thought of being with me. But you and I can't happen...and if you really cared about your friendship with Riley like I know you do...you'd agree with me and let the thought of us being together go." Maya stared at Josh as he started to walk away, leaving her alone in her thoughts. She tried to recollect what Josh was telling her, unbelieving that it was true. He didn't like her like that...and not even a song was going to change his mind. Maya sat back down on the steps and started to cry, not realizing that Farkle was once again watching her. Zay walked next to Farkle and stood there, the two of them glancing at Maya sitting by herself.

"I think you should tell her how you really feel." Zay said which caused Farkle to look at him. "You're killing yourself over here, man." Farkle shook his head and stared at Maya who was busy by herself, Farkle immediately walking away.

"I can't do that to her. She just had her heart broken. And let's face it...she'd _never_ be interested in _me._ " Farkle shrugged his shoulders before leaving the school, Zay glancing at Maya who was trying her hardest to recollect herself. Maya didn't know why relationships and love had to be so complicated...but now she knew she wasn't destined for anything that had to do with Josh. It just wasn't meant to be.

* * *

Riley entered the school the next morning with her books clutched to her chest, a smile appearing on her face as she went into her locker. She wasn't expecting the locker door to close and for her to see Lucas's concerned face. She wondered if everything was all right with him...after all, he was the one that wanted her to do the talent show in the first place.

"Riley? Did you write that poem before the talent show?" Lucas asked. "I mean, the poem didn't really sound like you."

"What do you mean?" Riley questioned, opening her locker slowly. "That poem was totally 100% me. I mean, I wrote it like the day before, and I thought it was perfect. Was there a problem?"

"Not necessarily, but..." Lucas started to explain before he noticed Cory was walking with the guidance counselor. "Mr. Matthews, this looks serious."

"Yeah, it is Lucas." Cory said which caused Riley to stare at her father. "Riley, do you mind coming with us for a minute?" Riley nodded her head and followed Cory and the guidance counselor into the room, Riley closing the door and noticing Topanga was sitting in one of the chairs.

"Mom?" Riley questioned, walking towards her and noticing Topanga was smiling at her softly. "Whats going on here? Did someone die? Was it Grandma? Grandpa? _Mr. Feeny?!"_

"No, no honey. Grandma, Grandpa and Mr. Feeny are all alive and well." Topanga assured her, motioning towards the chair. "Just come have a seat honey. There's something the guidance counselor wanted to talk to you about." Riley eventually nodded her head before sitting down at the table in front of her, Topanga taking one of her hands and Cory giving the guidance counselor a solemn look.

"All right, um...sweetheart, I was talking with Ms. Beals...the guidance counselor of the school...and she wanted to talk to you about your poem at the talent show yesterday." Cory told his daughter, but Riley immediately worried she had offended someone with her poem. After all, Lucas brought up her poem mere moments ago, and it had him concerned.

"Was there something wrong with it?" Riley questioned. "I mean, if it was offensive...I'm truly sorry."

"No, don't be sorry." Ms. Beals put her hand up, giving Riley a sympathetic look. "There was nothing wrong with the poem...but it did leave me with some thought that there could be something upsetting you. Not a lot of kids write deep poems simply when they're happy all the time...and it does leave me to wonder..."

"Wonder what?" Riley asked. Ms. Beals didn't know how else to word it, so she folded her hands and gave Riley a softened look.

"Riley, I wonder if you're battling with some form of depression..." Ms. Beals said, which caused Riley to widen her eyes with misperception. Cory and Topanga stared at their daughter with a concerned look while Riley glanced at Ms. Beals. Depression? Her? How could Riley battle with something like that. She was always happy...all the time...or maybe this past week really brought to light how she was _truly_ feeling.


	7. 1x07: Girl Meets Depression

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Riley's poem troubles a lot of the students, many begin to wonder if Riley is suffering from a form of depression. Despite Riley telling everyone she's fine, she begins to question whether she truly is okay. Farkle acts as a secret admirer to Maya in order to lift her spirits following her fallout with Joshua, but Maya is determined to find out the secret identity of her admirer.

                                                                              

* * *

_**ACT 1** _

* * *

_Previously on "_ _**Girl Meets World"** _

_{Riley and Maya walk to Riley's apartment and Riley stares at Maya}_

_Riley: Maya, I am extremely talentless..._

_Maya: Riley, will you please explain to me what's wrong with you? You sound so...sad and it's beginning to worry me._

_{Scene shows Maya and Josh in the hallway}_

_Josh: You're too young to understand the concept of relationships, or even to fall in love._

_{Scene shows Riley talking to Lucas in her room}_

_Riley: I'm...nothing._

_Lucas: Riley, don't you EVER say that you're nothing._

_{Scene shows Maya sitting down on the stairs and crying while Farkle stares at her}_

_Zay: I think you should tell her how you really feel. You're killing yourself over here man._

_Farkle: I can't do that to her. And let's face it, she'd_ never _be interested in me._

_{Riley sits in an office as Ms. Beals stares at her with a solemn look}_

_Ms. Beals: Riley, I wonder if you're battling some form of depression..._

* * *

"Depressed? I...I don't think I'm depressed." Riley said as she tried to comprehend the news. "I've been really upset over the last few days, but other than that...I think I'm okay."

"Riley, your anger might not have just been there for a few days." Ms. Beals said. "It could have been bottled up and this week was your breaking point. Your poem spoke to me...and it sad that you think you live in a world where there is nothing but disappointment, and even when there's joy, you're truly not happy with yourself." Riley shook her head as she turned to her parents, noticing that they were staring at her with worry.

"I'm okay." Riley assured Ms. Beals."...I really _am_."

"I know you think you are Riley, but I've seen this case far too many times before." Ms. Beals told her. "Sometimes kids believe that they're fine or convince themselves they're fine so they don't believe they have a problem. I just want to make sure that whatever it is that's bothering you is nipped in the bud so it won't overtake your life. I want to meet with you once a week so I could speak with you further. I just want you to understand that you're not alone, Riley...you never were and you never will be. Okay?" Riley nodded her head slowly and folded her hands but she didn't understand how she could be depressed. She was Riley Matthews, the happy go-lucky girl that everyone could count on. There was no way that Riley was bottling up her feelings and letting her other emotions get to her.

"Um, is it okay that I get to class? I don't want to be late..." Riley asked, Cory nodding his head softly.

"Sure honey," Cory assured her, Riley getting up from her chair and walking away. As soon as Riley left, she noticed Lucas was standing by the office and he was a little concerned for her. Why did the guidance counselor want to speak to Riley of all people? Did something happen?

"Hey, how did everything go in there?" Lucas questioned, which caused Riley to nod her head slowly.

"Everything went fine." Riley quickly answered. "Um, we should go. We have math. Don't want to be late." It was almost as if Riley was rushing to get away from the situation, and it concerned Lucas. However, he wasn't going to elaborate and decided to do as she asked. After all, she was right. They did have to get to class and he knew Riley was big on following the rules. But in the back of his mind, Lucas wasn't going to stop wondering what happened in the guidance counselors office.

* * *

                                                                  

* * *

 

Maya entered the hallway that morning with art supplies in her hand, all while she was trying to find her way to her locker. She wasn't quite sure how she had gotten into this mess, but somehow she had accepted a job of painting the school mural and having it displayed in the atrium during the duration of the school year. Maya was already making a name for herself, and she had to admit it was definitely worth it. As Maya walked up to her locker, she noticed Farkle coming out of the science room and once Farkle saw Maya struggling with her supplies, he knew it was time to help. He walked over and grabbed the poster-board and markers, Maya giving him a thankful glance in return.

"What's all this stuff for?" Farkle pondered, Maya going to her locker and putting in the combination.

"I was asked by the art teacher to paint the school mural." Maya answered. "But believe it or not, I'm being forced to do this. It was either paint the mural or face detention for a stink bomb I planted in chess club." Farkle stared at Maya with slight worry before his eyes widened.

"So that's why it smelled like rotten eggs in there." Farkle sounded as if he had realized something important. "Maya, why?"

"What can I say, Farkle? Chess stinks." Maya nodded her head and opened the locker, putting some of her books in there. But as she was placing books inside, she saw something fall out, and it caused Farkle to glance at her with interest. "What do we have here?" Maya asked, picking up the card and reading the back. "Hmm, this looks like a fancy lovey-dovey card."

"What does it say?" Farkle pondered, Maya reading the back of the card with interest.

" _Your golden hair remind me of sunshine, which is the ultimate source of Vitamin D._ " Maya read the card before she 'awed'. "Oh, that is so sweet!...in a really nerdy sort of way."

"Wow, it looks like someone is really trying to get your attention." Farkle replied, although Maya thought for a moment. "Who's the card from?"

"Hmm, that's weird." Maya scrunched her face and looked at the card every which way. "There's no name on it."

"No name on the card?" Farkle blinked. "Gee Maya, it sounds like you have a secret admirer."

"Me? A secret admirer?" Maya pointed to herself before letting out a slight laugh. "I don't know. Why would anyone want to like me and go through all the trouble in sending me cards and stuff?"

"Because you're beautiful." Farkle blurted out which caused Maya to raise an eyebrow at him. Farkle knew he had to think fast, or else Maya could have gotten ideas. "Because you're beautiful.. _ly_...talented in art and...all that stuff. Yay, art." Maya continued staring at Farkle as if he had said something revealing, but her focus went back to the card.

"You know, maybe I should figure out who the secret admirer is." Maya said before Farkle shook his head.

"Oh, you don't want to do that!" Farkle replied, once again causing suspicion from Maya.

"Why not?" Maya wondered, with Farkle realizing he had to think fast.

"Um, well...if you try to figure out who it is, then where's the fun in having a secret admirer?" Farkle thought which in turn caused Maya to realize he was right. "For now, maybe he wants to stay secret, and maybe he's waiting until he feels comfortable before he can tell you how he feels in person." Maya thought for a moment before nodding her head, holding the card close to her and giving him a small smile.

"You're right, Farkle." Maya said, placing the card back in her locker. "I mean, we should let the guy have his fun for now, right? But eventually I am going to want to know who it is."

"And I'm sure you will know." Farkle assured her, Maya giving him a softened smile. "Come on, what are we standing around for? We have history." Maya closed the locker and patted Farkle on the back, motioning for him to follow her, but all Farkle could do was let out a relieved sigh. For now, Maya wasn't going to find out her secret admirer, and that meant for now his secret on liking Maya was safe.

* * *

History class was usually Riley's favorite time of day; it was where her friends let their imaginations run while and where her dad usually let the kids run the class only for it to be a way to express themselves. But Riley didn't feel like expressing herself in class that day. Instead, she just sat there quietly, looking straight down at her notebook and zoning everyone else out around her. Cory entered the classroom and looked at Riley, his face twisting into concern when he noticed she wasn't her usual bubbly self. Instead, she was just a little too quiet for his liking. He put the briefcase down and walked over to her desk, bending down and noticing Riley's eyes were locking with his. Cory didn't say anything, instead he was just observing her and maybe he hoped Riley would talk first. But she didn't...she reverted her gaze back to her notebook and continued to stare down at the blank sheet of paper. Cory knew this wasn't his daughter, and he was determined to find out why Riley was so down on her self. The room started filling up with kids and that gave Cory a cue to get up from his position and head to the front of the class, but not before patting Riley on the back lightly and giving her an assuring look.

"All right class," Cory said as soon as everyone filed in and the students took their seats. "I was going to do a lesson on Thomas Edison and why it was important for him to make electricity." But the kids were surprised when Cory threw the book into the trash can and shrugged his shoulders. "But I want to do something else today."

"But Mr. Matthew, without electiricty, we wouldn't have science experiments and computers...or light." Zay raised his hand. "And we all know how tough it is to go to the bathroom in the dark." Lucas and Farke stared at Zay with a raised eyebrow, but Cory decided to ignore what Zay said for the moment.

"Anyway, everyone, take out a sheet of paper." Everyone was confused by Cory's lesson, and they weren't sure what he was up to, but they decided to trust his instinct and do as they were told. "Okay, now I want you to write how you feel about yourself on that sheet of paper. It doesn't have to be long, but try to think of something that reflects you, and it can be anything." The students all wrote on a sheet of paper, but Cory's eyes were focused on Riley. He saw her think for a moment before begrudgingly picking up her pen and writing a few words on the sheet of paper. "Okay, now I want you to fold the paper and hand it to the person next to you." Everyone folded their paper and handed it to the person they were sitting next to, but Maya realized Riley didn't want to hand over her paper.

"Riley, point of the assignment is to give me your paper." Maya said with a light chuckle, motioning for Riley's paper, but Riley didn't budge. Instead she just stared down at the sheet of paper and shook her head, not wanting everyone to see what she had written.

"Yeah, it's not that hard Riley." Zay added. "In fact, Lucas said on his that he's athletic. And Farkle...wants to be a ruthless dictator." Maya stared at Farkle who shrugged his shoulders, causing Maya to release a sigh and shake her head.

"Gee Farkle, you sure don't understand the part of the United States being a democracy." Lucas muttered.

"One leader is all the United States needs, and I can rule them with an iron fist." Farkle answered nonchalantly, but everyone's attention went back to Riley, especially since she didn't want to hand Maya her sheet of paper.

"Riley, come on, hand me the sheet of paper." Maya tried to reach for it, but Riley slapped Maya's hand away, causing Maya to raise an eyebrow in confusion. "Ouch! Riley, what's going on with you?" Maya suddenly became concerned, but Riley's eyes darted towards Cory, her face full of uncertainty and even possibly anger.

"Why are you making us do this?" Riley blurted out, everyone staring at her with confusion. "I don't want to do this stupid lesson! I don't want people to know how other people really feel about themselves because then it just gives them something to laugh at or not understand! Maybe some people just want to keep their thoughts to themselves and not share how they're really feeling in fear they'll be judged! Maybe they just want to be left alone and not diagnosed like they're a crazy person! Maybe...they just wish they weren't around for this stupid lesson!" Riley got up from her chair and walked out of the classroom, with Cory releasing a sigh.

"Riley!" Cory called after her, but the door to the classroom closed and everyone stared in confusion. Cory turned towards the blackboard and released a sigh, with Zay slowly raising his hand from his seat. "What do _you_ want?" Cory questioned after a moment, Zay slowly putting his hand down and gazing at his teacher.

"Um, is Riley going to get detention for this or...," Zay pondered, but Cory ignored Zay's question when he went towards his desk and rubbed his temples. Maya looked at the sheet of paper that was on Riley's desk and grabbed it, Lucas and Farkle immediately questioning what she was doing.

"Maya, Riley didn't want you to read it." Lucas said in a firm tone, but Maya didn't listen to him. Instead, she was looking at the sheet of paper and her face twisted to confusion.

"How does Riley feel about herself?" Maya asked, looking at her friends with concern before showing what Riley had written to her friends. " _Hopeless_." Lucas slowly took the paper from Maya's hand and stared down at it, wondering what was bothering Riley. She had been acting really odd lately, and now it seemed it was just culminating together to the point where Riley could reach her breaking point. All of them felt they had to figure out what was wrong with Riley, but at the same time they didn't know how to approach the situation. They just knew something was terribly wrong...

* * *

Riley opened the front door to the apartment that afternoon as she placed her keys down on the table and stared into space. Riley wasn't sure what had caused that blow-up in History class, but she was just left feeling _angry_ and even a little confused. Riley continued staring into space as Auggie came out of his room, and he was excited to see his sister home from a long day at school.

"Riley, you're here!" Auggie smiled as Riley blankly stared at him. "Let's play! You'd make a better pretend pirate than mommy!"

"Auggie...um, thats sweet but I...I don't want to play pirate." Riley shook her head while folding her arms in front of her.

"What?" Auggie sounded surprised. "But you love to play pirate with me."

"I know but I don't really feel like doing anything." Riley started making her way towards the stairs. "I just want to go to bed."

"Bed? But it's 3:30 in the afternoon." Auggie innocently blinked. "Are you sick, Riley?"

"No, I'm not sick." Riley firmly answered. "I just want to be left alone."

"But why?" Auggie asked. "Why do you want to be left alone?"

"Because I just _do_ , Auggie! Okay?!" Riley yelled, but she noticed her brother's face had turned to sadness from Riley yelling at him. Riley felt her face soften as she noticed Auggie going towards the stairs. "Auggie..."

"You don't want to play with me? You could have just said so! But you yelled at me, and you're not being a good sister, Riley! You're...you're no fun anymore." Auggie told her which caused Riley's heart to break. Auggie headed back towards his room and closed the door, which caused Topanga to come into the living room and notice Riley's upset face.

"Riley? What happened?" Topanga asked, but Riley went past her mother and closed the door to her room, which caused Topanga to become worried. She immediately became panicked when she heard the lock on Riley's door, and that was when Topanga knew something was seriously wrong. Topanga went towards her cellphone and dialed a few numbers, placing it to her ear and running a hand through her hair. "Cory..., you have to come home _now._ " Topanga paused for a few moments as her face twisted into confusion. "No, they didn't discover a new type of seahorse!" Topanga sighed before looking towards Riley's room. "It's Riley. I...I think the guidance counselor might have been right about her." Topanga crossed her arm over her chest as she stayed on the phone, but she glanced towards Riley's room again and felt her heart break. She always wanted her children to have a happy environment...so why was Riley so miserable?

* * *

Cory had come home as soon as Topanga had called him, and once he entered the house, he noticed Topanga sitting on the couch while appearing clueless. Cory knew his first instinct was to go over and give Topanga a hug, especially since Riley being so upset had an impact on her parents. Cory gave Topanga a softened look and sat her back down on the couch again, the two of them sitting in silence as they thought about their daughter.

"I don't get it, Cory." Topanga said. "This isn't Riley. I don't know who this person is."

"Topanga, I'm sure that Riley is fine." Cory replied. "The only reason I haven't freaked is because her friends usually fix all her problems."

"Wha..?" Topanga blurted out. "So what are _we_ here for?!" Topanga pointed towards herself and Cory, but Cory slowly put his wife's hand down, giving her a smile.

"We're here as magical ghosts who guide our daughter through right and wrong." Cory shrugged his shoulders. "But her friends fix everything. I'm sure any minute now they're going to come through that door, and have a good laugh about what made Riley so sad." As Cory said so, the doorbell started to ring, and it caused him to get up and see what it was for himself. Cory opened the door and saw Farkle, Maya, Zay and Lucas standing there, and he had to wonder what they were doing at the front door. Maya, Lucas and Farkle _never_ came through the front door. "This isn't how it usually works." Cory told them. "How this goes is you go through Riley's bay window and you talk to her there. Since when do you use the door?"

"Well, I _always_ use the door." Zay pointed a finger at himself as Lucas rolled his eyes at his friend.

"And you always take their food. Congratulations, you're 'Model Citizen of the Year'." Maya muttered in response which caused Zay to glare at her.

"As for _us_ , we had to use the front door." Farkle motioned towards him, Lucas and Maya. "Riley locked the bay window so no one could go in."

"What?" Topanga got up from her chair and walked towards Riley's friends. "What do you mean Riley locked her bay window? She never locks the bay window!"

"But...that bay window is magical." Cory said. "If the bay window can't fix this then nothing can. She's doomed."

" _Cory_." Topanga's voice was sharp, and caused Cory to shrug his shoulders. "Okay, maybe we're missing the bigger picture here. How does Riley go from the world's most happiest teenager to...a sad one who sits in her room and keeps everyone she loves away from her?"

"Maybe we should think back to the beginning, to when this behavior started..." Lucas said, sitting on the couch. "I doubt this came out of the blue, and I think if we figure out what happened, then it will be easier to approach Riley."

"Wait, so we're just supposed to sit here and do nothing?" Maya scoffed. "That doesn't work for me. I say we break down her door and demand to know what's going on."

"Yes, because Riley's going to be really open with us if we break down her door and force her to talk." Lucas sardonically replied before he turned serious. "Maya, I am just as worried as you are about Riley. But making her talk isn't going to do her any good. And I'm just saying, we need to respect her because if we make her do something she doesn't want to do, then we're going to look bad and she's not going to be open with us."

"I've known Riley longer than you, Ranger Rick." Maya said. "She probably just wants someone to go in there and talk to her without her getting a chance to explain her feelings. And I would be more than glad to talk to her under those circumstances."

"Making Riley talk isn't going to make her feel better." Lucas retorted. "It's going to make her feel cornered. Would you want to be cornered into talking if something was bothering you?"

"If it helped solve the problem, yes." Maya answered. Farkle and Zay stared at Maya and Lucas as they had a small argument, but Farkle couldn't help but notice that Zay was eating a bowl of popcorn, and after plopping each bit into his mouth, he widened his eyes with intent. Farkle slapped his forehead with his hand, but Zay was too busy munching on the Matthews' popcorn and watching Lucas and Maya fight over Riley's wellbeing to care about Farkle being irate. "You saw what Riley wrote on that sheet of paper today, Lucas. She wrote she felt hopeless. That means we need to go in there and figure out why she feels that way."

"Wait, what sheet of paper?" Topanga questioned. Lucas went in his pocket and handed Topanga the sheet of paper, Topanga looking down and her eyes widening. "Why did she write this down?"

"Mr. Matthews wanted us to write how we felt about ourselves in class today." Lucas replied. Topanga looked at her husband while furrowing her eyebrows, but Cory shifted his eyes as if he was trying to get out of the situation. When he couldn't find words, he went towards the popcorn bowl and placed a few popcorn kernels in his mouth. "Mr. Matthews, I don't think eating is the solution here."

"The more I eat, the more I can put off answering to my wife." Cory let his sentence out in an exaggerated whisper, Topanga rolling her eyes and staring at Lucas.

"Lucas, I think you're right on how we should approach this." Topanga said. "Cory obviously tried to get Riley to share her feelings, although it was in a public setting, and she wasn't budging. I think the best thing we can do is leave her alone and wait for this to play out."

"That's now how I roll." Maya started walking towards the front door, which caused everyone to glance at her.

"Maya, where are you going?" Farkle wondered, Maya turning around to stare at him.

"I'm going to talk to her." Maya answered. "She obviously doesn't want to talk to any of you. Now to _me_ , she's going to be more than open with her feelings." Maya closed the door behind her, although everyone seemed a little bit concerned. They weren't sure if Maya was approaching the situation with a clear head, but what were they going to do? Maya was going to do whatever it took to try to get through Riley, even if it meant it was going to hurt her.

* * *

Riley lay in her bed as she absentmindedly stared at the clock, wondering when the minutes were going to tick to hours and when she was going to have to get up from the bed in order to go to school. The only problem was, Riley didn't feel like getting up to do anything. She just wanted to lay in bed and hear only the silence of her room. Riley wasn't going to get that silence when she heard someone trying to open the window, causing her to turn around and realize Maya was right there. Riley really just wanted to be left alone, and that meant she didn't want Maya to bother her.

"Riley, open this bay window right now!" Maya said from outside the window, but Riley turned back around and continued staring at the clock. "Riley, I'm not leaving from here until you open this window..., and I know you're not going to leave me out here, because it's cold...and you know how much I hate feeling cold." Riley shrugged her shoulders lightly but didn't bother getting up from the bed. Maya let out a tired sigh, banging on the window again with hopes that Riley would eventually come. "Riley, please...come to the window? We need to talk about what happened in History class today."

"No we don't!" Riley yelled from her bed.

"Yes, we do Riley!" Maya shouted. "This isn't you. You're usually happy, go-lucky...and a little dancing energizer bunny! You love bunnies, right?!"

"I _used_ to _._ " Riley muttered, and Riley's answered caused Maya to knock on the window again.

"Riley, how you're acting is not you, and it's seriously freaking me out." Maya sighed. "You need to please come out of bed and open this window. Riley, please..." Riley turned towards the window and slowly got out of bed. But once Riley got to the window, she pulled the string on the curtain, which prevented her from seeing Maya. "Riley! Open this curtain and window right now!"

"No!" Riley yelled back. "You don't understand how I'm feeling! No one does. And I'm not telling you why I feel this way. Now leave me alone and stop pressuring me into telling you what's wrong!"

"So even after I climb the fire escape and try to force you to talk to me, you're going to do this?! You're not being a very good friend if you're not telling me your problems!" Maya shouted, but Riley froze when she heard Maya's words. She covered her mouth with her hands and tried her hardest not to let the tears fall, but instead she turned towards the door and wiped the few tears she had on her face.

"Great, that's another thing I'm not good at." Riley said above a mutter. "Just do me a favor, Maya. Go away and leave me alone." Riley went back to bed and got under the covers, staring at the clock while the tears dripped down her face. Outside the bay window, Maya simply stood there, almost unbelieving that she had said something so hurtful to Riley. Maya pondered what to do for a moment, before she ultimately went to the fire escape and went down. She wasn't going to tell everyone what Riley said, mainly because she would be at fault for provoking Riley into saying those specific words.

* * *

The next morning, Cory entered the Matthews kitchen and saw Topanga sitting at the breakfast table, eating a banana and looking through a case file for work. Cory stared back at Riley's room, realizing the door was still closed. They haven't seen their daughter since the day before, and Cory was honestly really worried about her. He just had to keep up appearances so that Auggie wouldn't get suspicious that something was terribly wrong with Riley, but overall whatever was bothering their daughter was bothering them too.

"Hey, anything from Riley?" Cory wondered, sitting down in the chair while Topanga shook her head.

"No, she's still in there." Topanga sighed while putting the case folder to the side. "Maybe we should let her stay home from school today. She's obviously going through a lot and we don't even know what's specifically wrong with her."

"Yeah," Cory agreed with his wife, folding his hands and appearing concerned. "I wondered what could of happened that caused her to be this way. She was always the happiest child growing up, and now to see her like this, it scares me. I don't usually admit when I'm scared but...seeing Riley as a different person is worrying, and it makes me worry that I could lose her because she's climbing into a hole that she can't climb out of."

"Riley wouldn't go that far, honey." Topanga said above a whisper.

"That's the thing with kids who suffer from depression, Topanga." Cory added. "You don't know how far they're going to go. Some of them just have a breaking point, and unfortunately for us, we don't know when's Riley's breaking point."

"I just want to know why my little girl is so sad." Topanga admitted. "I miss my Smiley Riley."

"Don't we both." Cory patted his wife's hand, but when they heard footsteps, they turned towards the stairs and saw Riley slowly making her way into the kitchen. "Hey, kiddo." Cory tried to sound as sympathetic as possible. Riley sat down at the kitchen table and looked down at her hands, unsure if she should say something to her parents.

"Riley, I know you don't feel like talking right now." Topanga told her, which caused Riley to look at her mother with a saddened expression. "But I want you to know that if you want to talk, whenever you want...your father and I are always here to listen." Riley continued glancing at her mother before wiping the tear that was falling down her cheek, and that caused Cory to place a hand on her shoulder.

"You shouldn't waste your time on me." Riley said, causing her to get up from the table and head to the couch. "I'm not worth it."

"What?" Cory sounded taken aback as he and Topanga made their way to the couch. "Riley, you are always worth it, honey."

"No, no I'm not." Riley shook her head furiously. "The talent show was just the tip of the iceberg, but I realized I'm not good enough for anything. I mean, I'm not good enough for a talent show, I'm not good enough for Auggie and I'm not good enough for Maya! I'm probably not good enough for Lucas, Farkle, Zay or you guys! I'm not good enough for Uncle Shawn, Uncle Eric, Grandma and Grandpa..."

"Riley," Topanga started to say, but Cory stopped her. They didn't know when Riley was going to be this open with her feelings again, and it was best that they listened.

"I'm not good _enough_!" Riley shouted, while tears fell from her face. She covered her eyes with her hands as she sniffled, but the next part of Riley's sentence was what really worried Cory and Topanga. "Sometimes I wonder if the world would be better off without me..." Riley started sobbing before Cory gave her a hug, Topanga joining in as the three of them just sat on the couch, not saying a word and wondering how they were going to move on from something that was so serious and yet so heartbreaking.

* * *

_**END ACT 1** _

* * *

_**ACT 2  
** _

* * *

Maya walked through the school hallway that morning as she held her backpack close to her. She thought about her fight with Riley the other day and she was wondering what had prompted her to say something so hurtful to her. She just hoped that once she saw Riley, she could apologize for what she said. But Maya noticed Lucas and Farkle standing in front of Riley's locker, and the looks on their face gave away that there was something wrong. As Maya walked over to the locker, Lucas gave her a solemn look, which caused her to furrow her eyebrows with confusion.

"What's going on?" Maya questioned, Farkle giving Maya a shrug of his shoulders. "Why is everyone acting like someone's great aunt died?"

"It's not that serious but serious nonetheless." Farkle responded. "Riley never showed up to school this morning." Maya widened her eyes which caused her to stare at Lucas.

"Did you speak with her?" Maya immediately asked. "Did she say why she's not in school?"

"No, I haven't spoken to her." Lucas replied, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "I tried to, but Riley didn't pick up the phone. In fact, Riley has been acting really odd since yesterday. Almost as if she doesn't want our help."

"But that's crazy, of _course_ Riley wants our help." Maya scoffed, trying to hide the fact that she was guilty for what she said to her best friend the day before. "I mean, you're all thinking something crazy is going on with her, but I'm going to prove it to you. She's going to come to history class and talk about sunshine, bunnies and rainbows. You'll see." Maya led Farkle and Lucas towards the history room, the three of them taking their designated seat. Maya folded her hands and stared intently at the door, hoping and wishing that Riley was going to come in as her usual bubbly self. Maya heard some footsteps and stared at Farkle, giving him a smirk while smugly shrugging her shoulders. "See? I told you Riley was coming to school." However, Maya was surprised when she turned around, and saw it was only Zay coming through the door. "Ugh, it's just _you_."

"If this helps...I'm offended, Ms. Hart." Zay scoffed and took a seat behind Lucas. "So, what are you all waiting for?"

"I'm waiting for Riley to come through that door so we can talk about what's going on." Maya sighed. "Farkle, Lucas and I think there's something wrong with her and we're going to get to the bottom of it."

"All right, well...I don't wanna tell you this, but I don't think Riley is coming to school today." Zay started to explain, but Lucas turned around and faced his friend.

"What makes you say that?" Lucas pondered, but before Zay had a chance to answer, a teacher that wasn't Cory came through the door, forcing the kids to stare at him with shock. Cory always came to school with some insane lesson about friendships or something completely irrelevant...so where was he?

"You're not Mr. Matthews." Zay stated the obvious. The teacher nodded his head at Zay while Maya, Farkle and Lucas appeared perplexed.

"That's right, I'm not Mr. Matthews. This may come as a shock to you, but he's not the only teacher in the entire school." The teacher said. "I'm Mr. Harvey...no relation to Mets pitcher Matt Harvey...unfortunately."

"You're not Mr. Matthews." Zay repeated for emphasis.

"I know." Mr. Harvey responded. "Mr. Matthews requested vacation time, so for the next few days, I'm going to be your teacher."

"Wait, so Mr. Matthews isn't here to teach us about Belgium 1831?!" Farkle asked as Mr. Harvey shook his head. "That _MONSTER_!"

"No, he's not here to teach you about Belgium, although I don't know why you'd want to. But in the meantime, I can do my best to teach you about...the history of toe fongus." Maya and Lucas glanced at each other as Mr. Harvey walked to the board, forcing Maya to lean closer with concern.

"Something is _really_ wrong with Riley if she and Mr. Matthews decided to stay home." Maya whispered. "I think we need to go and talk to her after school." Lucas nodded his head with agreement as he noticed Farkle writing down what Mr. Harvey was saying.

"Farkle, none of this is going to be on a test." Lucas said.

"You don't know that..." Farkle stated in a matter-of-fact tone, keeping his eyes on the piece of paper as he continued scribbling every word from Mr. Harvey's mouth.

* * *

Riley sat in front of the television as she flicked through the channels, her eyebrows furrowing when she couldn't find anything to watch. After she had revealed how she was feeling to her mother and father, she admitted she felt a little better, but at the same time, she wanted to further understand her feelings. As Riley continued glancing at the television, Cory came to the couch with some test papers, Riley acknowledging her father as he took a seat on the couch.

"You know you didn't have to stay home with me." Riley said.

"Yes I did." Cory assured her, placing a hand on Riley's shoulder. "Besides, I forgot to grade all these papers and the last thing I need is to look foolish in front of my kids." Riley couldn't help but smile at her father while Cory glanced through the test papers, his eyes widening as he stared at one test. "Well, well, well..."

"What?" Riley wondered, Cory motioning towards the test in his hand.

"Maya actually got one right." Cory chuckled. "Go figure." He went back to the sheet of paper and felt his eyebrows narrow before glancing back at his daughter. "It's the only one she got right. Would it kill her to study?"

"She sold her history textbook to get cash for clothes." Riley revealed.

"That explains it." Cory muttered while writing Maya's grade on her test paper. Riley continued fiddling with her fingers as her father was grading another paper, finally working the courage to ask what was on her mind.

"Dad?" Riley asked, Cory staring at his daughter with interest. "You don't think I'm a bad friend for not telling Maya how I was feeling, right?"

"Of course not, Riley." Cory rubbed her shoulders, Riley glancing at her father with a small smile. "You weren't ready to tell anyone how you felt, and that's okay. But, I am _very_ glad that you told your mother and I what was bothering you. It was very brave you know."

"I just wonder...life is going to get better, right?" Riley asked, Cory raising an eyebrow as he wondered what she meant. "I mean, don't get me wrong, you and mom have done everything to make this a happy environment for Auggie and me, but at the same time, there's so much change going on at once. I left middle school, I started High School where I'm the small fish in the big pond, Lucas became my boyfriend..."

"Yeah, still not comfortable with that one." Cory gritted his teeth as he thought about Lucas before Riley continued her thought.

"The point is...there's so much change, and I don't like it. High School is the hardest thing I've ever done, and nothing I do makes me stand out from anyone. But, I can't let anyone know how I'm feeling, because I'm 'Smiley Riley.' Everyone will automatically think that something is wrong if I'm not smiling." Riley noticed Cory placed the papers on the glass table before rubbing his daughter's shoulders affectionately.

"High School is tough. Trust me, I've been there." Cory assured her. "But it's not going to be the hardest thing you've ever done. There's still college, and you're four years away from that." Riley smiled softly as her father sounded afraid at the prospect of college. "The point is, everyone feels a little lost when they're in a new place. When Shawn and I first started High School, we were literally whisked away by the crowd after we vowed we'd stick together. And there's going to be lots of obstacles regarding love and relationships in High School. Your mother and I have been there, but we're still together. The point I'm trying to make is all this change is scary, but it doesn't mean it's all bad. You're going to make your mark on High School when it's your moment...and regardless of what happens between you and Lucas, you're both going to be friends, right?" Riley nodded her head at her father's question. "You and your friends entered High School together and you're going to conquer High School together. You're not alone...because they're right there next to you, for better or worse." Riley nodded her head and hugged her father tightly, Cory squeezing her in return.

"Thank you..." Riley told her father as she stared up at her father. "I needed to hear that. But...what do I do the next time I feel sad because they're not there for me. I don't want to feel sad."

"Riley, feeling sad, even for the happiest person on earth, is completely normal." Cory assured her. "Just know that the sad days don't last forever, and things _will_ get better in the long run. As long as you have a strong support system, you're always going to be loved. I want you to know, the world is a better place with you in it, Riley. So don't ever think that it wouldn't be." Riley nodded her head and leaned her head on her dad's shoulder, but Cory grabbed a paper from the desk and gave her a smirk. "Now, how about I grade Lucas's paper in front of you."

"Isn't all of this supposed to be confidential?" Riley asked, Cory giving a sinister chuckle.

" _Maybe_..." Cory's behavior caused Riley to grin and hold onto her father. She was glad she could have someone like him to rely on. She just wished she could've had her friends...and she silently wished that she didn't alienate them when she wanted time to herself.

* * *

All day, Maya couldn't wait to leave school so she could go to Riley's house, with hopes of talking to her best friend. After Cory and Riley didn't show up, Maya figured there was something up, and she vowed she was going to get to the bottom of it. As Maya went to her locker, Lucas walked over with his backpack over his shoulder, a concerned expression painting his face.

"Ranger Rick, if you're going to talk to me, it has to wait." Maya stared at him. "Riley needs me."

"I know Riley needs you." Lucas told her. "She needs all of us right now..., but there's something I wanted to talk to you about...regarding Riley. You spoke with Riley yesterday...and she didn't tell you anything about why she was so upset? Sorry, I don't mean to sound pushy but...I'm trying to figure out why she doesn't want to talk to us. It's unlike her."

"No, she didn't tell me." Maya shook her head. "I mean, I insisted she'd tell me, but she refused. And then she got a little emotional..."

"Why did she get emotional?" Lucas pondered, Maya folding her hands together.

"It may or may not have something to do with me telling her that she was an awful friend for not telling me what was bothering her." Maya admitted. But once she admitted it, Lucas's eyes widened with horror.

"Maya?! Why would you tell her something like that?" Lucas asked, Maya shrugging her shoulders slightly.

"I don't know, it's just...I'm used to Riley telling me how she feels, and when she didn't, I got frustrated." Maya admitted. "I didn't mean to get so upset with her but I did. That might explain why she's not at school today and why she's avoiding us."

"Maya, I understand that you wanted to help Riley." Lucas sounded stern while crossing his arms. "But you shouldn't have tried to force Riley into talking. How would you feel if Riley tried to push you to talk about your dad since he's a nonexistent part of your life?" Maya considered it for a moment before shaking her head slowly.

"I wouldn't like it very much." Maya revealed. "I wouldn't want to share it with her until I'm ready."

"Which is probably what she wanted." Lucas said. "Riley gives us the courtesy to talk when we feel like it, but she doesn't try to push into doing so. And she doesn't tell us that we're awful for not telling her."

"But she can tell me what's going on. Why does she have to hide how she feels from me. She can trust me." Maya argued.

"This isn't about trust, Maya." Lucas sighed. "Sometimes there are just things that we can't explain to our friends because we don't believe it ourselves. She's going to tell those close to her, when she's ready. As her friends, we just have to be patient with her...even though I'm painfully aware that you don't know the meaning of patient." Lucas's words caused Maya to bite her lower lip and forced her to reconsider her actions from the day before.

"I messed up, didn't I?" Maya asked.

"Only because you care." Lucas assured her, but Maya knew there was more to his words. "But...I think you need to be more patient with her and wait for her to tell you when she's ready."

"You're right. Um, come on Lucas. Let's go and find Farkle and Zay." Maya insisted, heading down the hallway as Lucas followed. "I think we need to talk to Riley...and make sure that we're there for her in case she wants us to listen."

Riley sat on the couch that afternoon, holding her blanket close to her as she watched one of her favorite T.V. shows. It had been a rather quiet afternoon, and she was very fortunate to have this day to collect her thoughts. However, there was something missing, and Riley knew that it was her friends. Oh, how she missed them, but she wouldn't blame them for not coming. After all, she had been trying to shut them out.

* * *

Despite Riley thinking the afternoon was going to be a quiet one, there was a knock on the door, which forced Riley to get out of her blankets and see who her visitor was. She opened the door and noticed Maya was standing there, and Maya was solemnly folding her hands in front of her. Riley appeared surprised that Maya had come here after a long day at school, but she also wondered what Maya wanted.

"Hey..." Maya stared at her friend, Riley giving Maya a sad smile in return. "Do you think I can come in?"

"Yeah." Riley moved to the side as Maya walked into the room, sitting on the couch and glancing at the television. "So, was this what you've been doing all day?"

"Yeah, I...I needed something to clear my mind." Riley admitted, walking towards the couch and sitting opposite of Maya. "I needed something to remind me that I have to keep my head up and not let the world swallow me whole."

"Riley, I...I want to understand why you're feeling so sad." Maya said, although Riley seemed uncertain. Maya didn't want to make the same mistake she did before, where she made it feel as if Riley _had_ to divulge her feelings. "But...I don't want you to tell me if you're not ready. So, we can sit here for as long as you want, and if you don't want to tell me then that's okay."

"I...I just don't want to seem like a bad friend for not telling you." Riley felt her throat well up, which forced Maya to shake her head.

"No, Riles, you're not a bad friend for not telling me what's going on." Maya assured her, grabbing her hands and holding them firmly. "You have _never_ been a bad friend to me. In fact, _I_ haven't been a good friend to _you_...and I'm really sorry for trying to force you to talk, especially when you weren't ready. You always offer me that courtesy...and now it's my turn." Riley thought about it for a moment before leaning back on the sofa.

"Remember when they had the talent show and everyone was talking about their talents?" Riley pondered as Maya nodded her head. "I thought about everything everyone was good at. You have your art club, Lucas has basketball, Farkle has his robotics club and I...I have nothing. I couldn't even go through a list of things with Zay to find my talent, because I was terrible at them all."

"Oh, Riley..." Maya put a hand on Riley's shoulder, raising an eyebrow in the process. "You did help Zay get that kink out of his back when you threw the basketball at him. So...you'd make a good sports chiropractor."

"I wasn't trying to fix his back, I was aiming for the basket." Riley raised both her eyebrows.

"Of course you were, honey." Maya patted Riley's shoulder with assurance.

"Maya." Riley garnered her friend's attention again as Maya stared at her friend. "I've just realized that everyone in our group is insanely talented...and I'm afraid that one day we're going to find different things and drift apart. And I'm afraid that you or Lucas or Farkle aren't going to notice me...just like everyone else in school." Maya noticed Riley trying to fight back the tears, which prompted Maya to hug her friend tightly.

"Riley, I could never, ever forget my best friend." Maya said as Riley cried in the crook of Maya's shoulder. "Look, remember we made a pact at the beginning of the year, and we all said we were going to be there for each other, no matter what? I meant that. Yes, High School is a brand new ball game, and it's tough but that's why you have us to rely on. We're there for you."

"Not all the time unfortunately." Riley sniffled. "Sometimes the kids make fun of me when you're not there and they leave me wondering if this is worth it. If this entire... _life_ is worth it. I know my dad says that the world is better with me in it, but I don't see it, Maya. Especially since the world is full of cruel people who will do everything to break your spirit. I don't know if I _can_ be on a world like this."

"Peaches, listen to me." Maya's voice cracked as Riley stared at her with concern. "Don't you _ever_ talk like that, do you understand me? You are the sunshine of our lives, and when we have a bad day, we always come to you because we know we can count on you to make it better. If you didn't exist...think of all the things you'd miss out on. You'd miss going to prom, the movies, spending time with your family, new episodes of your favorite T.V. shows, your favorite foods..." Maya wasn't expecting to become emotional, but she found herself wiping some tears from her face. "Not only would you lose everything, but everyone will lose you...and we'd surely notice. Being sad sucks sometimes, and I know it's not fun to be picked on or to feel down all the time..., but you're so strong Riley and I know that you're going to be happy again. High School is hard...the _world_ is hard...but you're not going through any of this alone. You've got me, Riley...so please don't do anything that's going to make us lose you. You are so loved and I wish you would see it." Maya felt the tears fall from her eyes as Riley cried along with her, the two girls hugging and squeezing each other tightly. "I am always going to be there for you, Peaches. No matter what." As Riley continued hugging Maya, she didn't notice Lucas and Farkle coming into the living room, the two of them glancing at the girls with a smile.

"I'm always going to be there for you too, Riley." Lucas said, which caused Riley to look up and stare at Lucas with adornment. Lucas sat down and put his arm around Riley's shoulder, Maya grabbing one of Riley's hands for comfort.

"I'm always going to be there too." Farkle said, taking a seat next to Lucas.

"I love you guys." Riley told her friends as they all smiled back at her and brought her into a group hug.

"And we love you 'Smiley Riley'." Maya reciprocated while in the hug. As the four of them had their arms wrapped around each other, Zay came into the room and saw the four of them on the couch, which caused him to shake his head in disapproval.

"Lucas, did you abandon your manners from Texas?" Zay asked, which caused Lucas to raise an eyebrow at him. "You and Farkle walked through the door like you own the place and didn't even knock. Rude." Maya and Farkle couldn't help but let out a slight smile, before they noticed Zay making a beeline to the kitchen. "Ooh, is that BBQ ribs?" Riley couldn't help herself from smiling as Zay went into the kitchen to help himself. Riley knew she had some crazy friends, but she was fortunate that she could always count on them, even when the going got tough.

* * *

The next morning, Riley walked out of her bedroom with her backpack with her as she saw Cory, Topanga and Auggie in the kitchen. Her father was staring down at the papers that were in his hands, but once he felt his daughter's presence, he glanced up and smiled towards her, noticing that there was a grin on her face.

"Good morning!" Cory greeted as Riley sat down at the kitchen table. "How are you?"

"Last night was the best sleep I had in a long time." Riley admitted, Cory giving his daughter a kiss on the top of her head in response. Riley noticed he was still grading papers from yesterday, and she couldn't help but feel amused. "You're still grading papers?"

"I can't make out half the things Yogi writes." Cory fumbled through the papers and showed another one. "And Zay just put _Call Me, Vanessa_ with hearts and stars at the top of his paper. How ridiculous."

"I don't know Cory. it's not as ridiculous as you yelling, _TOPANGA!_ " Topanga mimicked Cory by getting out of her chair, falling on her knees and undoing buttons on her blazer, causing Riley and Auggie to laugh. As soon as Topanga was done mocking her husband, she stood up and fixed the blazer, sitting back in her seat and giving her husband a smug look. "So, I guess Zay _isn't_ the only ridiculous one." Riley grabbed the bowl of cereal and poured it into the bowl, trying not to laugh at her father's pinkish face. "Oh, Auggie. We have to go so you aren't late for school."

"Okay." Auggie grabbed his book bag and started heading towards the door, but he paused for a moment and went back to Riley, giving his big sister a kiss on the cheek. Riley was surprised Auggie had done such a thing, but she would be lying if she said she wasn't touched.

"Auggie." Riley smiled while running a hand through his hair. "What was that for?"

"For being the best sister in the entire world." Auggie told her, giving her another hug before walking over to Topanga. "Let's roll. I wanna show Ava my new jacket. Chicks dig guys in jackets." Topanga gritted her teeth at the mention of Ava, but she wasn't going to let Ava get the best of her. She took Auggie's hand and waved to both Cory and Riley, the two of them heading out the door in haste. As soon as Topanga left, Maya entered the room with a card, her eyes darting towards Riley who was eating some cereal.

"Peaches! How goes it?" Maya sat in the seat next to Riley, noticing the smile on her best friend's face.

"Good." Riley smiled while putting a spoonful of Frosted Flakes in her mouth. "I had a dream that I was on bunny island and the cloud I lived on was made of cotton candy."

"Those are the dreams I like to hear about." Maya grinned before tapping her fingers on the table. "I had a dream last night about me getting another secret admirer note. Oh, no wait that wasn't a dream." Maya handed the card to Riley as Riley took it, glancing down at the words and staring at at her best friend. "I don't get it. Why would someone want to send me a secret admirer card? You know, I should find out who this guy is."

"Maya..., maybe it's for the best that you don't go looking for him." Riley said, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. "I mean, maybe he wants to be in hiding because it's more romantic that way. And of course someone would like you...you're kind, creative, and absolutely lovely. Anyone would be happy to be in a relationship with you."

"I guess..." Maya thought for a moment before wiggling her eyebrows. "But there's no way I could ever date Ranger Rick. It'd be too weird."

"Don't worry about that...because he's mine." Riley pointed a finger at her friend, Maya chuckling in the process. "Anyway, I love the mystery of secret admirers. And if the person really cared about you, they would tell you how they feel."

"You're right." Maya agreed, getting up from the table. "So, are you ready for school?"

"Yep, I'm ready." Riley grabbed her backpack and went to hug her father. Cory had to admit he was surprised by Riley's hug, but he hugged his daughter back and felt his heart swell up from emotion.

"What's that for?" Cory wondered, Riley staring at her father with a smile.

"Just...thank you, daddy." Riley hugged her father once more. "I love you."

"I love you too, Riley." Cory reciprocated, Riley breaking the hug and linking arms with Maya.

"Are you ready to go to school?" Riley asked, Maya nodding her head and opening the door. On the other end of the door, Lucas, Farkle and Zay were standing there with a grin, feeling relieved that Riley was much happier than she was in days past.

"Hey. Ready to take on the world?" Lucas asked, Riley nodding her head and giving Lucas a kiss on his cheek in response. Lucas smiled down and took her backpack, Riley waving towards her father as if to say another final goodbye. As soon as Riley was gone, Cory went to close the door, but he noticed the card that was on the table, which prompted curiosity. Cory picked up the card and gazed through it, his eyes widening with surprise.

"Yeah, that was definitely Farkle who wrote this." Cory chortled while observing the penmanship. "It's ridiculous." Cory went to grab the papers that were on the desk, but the paper that caught his attention was Riley's. She had gotten an A+ on her recent quiz, which was a polar opposite of how Cory used to be in school. She was quite different from both of her parents, but she was still extremely special. He just knew with the help of her friends, Riley was going to do amazing things.

* * *

_**Feeling sad is a normal human emotion, and it's okay to feel down every once in a while. But if you see or hear things that aren't there, feel hopeless or weak, withdraw yourself from others or have difficulty concentrating, then you may be suffering from depression. And if you are having suicidal thoughts, please do not hesitate to talk to a grown-up or teacher, or call** **1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).** _

_**Before you think that no one cares about you, just know that there's someone out there that does care, and know the world is a much better place with you in it.** _


End file.
